Phoenix Rising
by PeachHart
Summary: Rosanna Gilbert, the twin sister of Jeremy and younger sister of Elena, is trying desperately to adjust to their new darkened world. Her survival from that car crash was a baffling miracle, sparking a new phase into a life she never dreamed she'd have.
1. Dear Mom

Dear Mom,

I don't want to direct this entry towards the fabled "diary entity". I get that it works for Elena, she's built up a lifelong relationship with hers, but the person I so desperately want to speak to right now…is, well, you. So…

It's the first day of school, and I'm in dire need of a pep talk here. My chest feels heavy. My mind feels empty. My hands are sweaty; would it be super weird to just cover them in chalk? I could stop by the gym before class? I could say I've been training all morning? Or is that somehow worse…like I'm not dealing with this? I'm burying myself in training. Burying was a terrible word choice, I'm sorry. I know you'll forgive me. You would forgive me.

Elena tells me that today will be different for the sole reason that it has to be. Today her smile will be believable; she tells me she has been practising all week. The smile will say "I'm fine, thank you." "Yes, I feel much better." She will no longer be the sad little girl who lost her parents. She will start fresh, be someone new. It's the only way to make it through. It's a nice idea.

I think she wants to unite us, but all three of us appear to be adopting completely different techniques. She's going to be someone new. I've vehemently remained the same. Jeremy is…well, he has full on derailed. I say this with a twinge of pain but mostly guilt; I've not been present for him, I've been elsewhere, both physically and mentally. But…we used to be inseparable. We used to have each other's backs. He's not just my twin brother, he's always been my best friend. We used to tell each other everything but I find out he's getting into drugs, and boning Vicki Donovan through the grapevine. I'm sorry, again. Maybe that was a revelation better suited to Diary? The point is…we don't talk anymore. Not like we used to.

I can't even put this year into words; I have to keep reminding myself that this is in fact real. This is our life now.

It was supposed to be the best day of my life, to date. Which I suppose says a lot about me. We swept the board again at Nationals. The ribbons are all pinned to my wall now, next to all the others. I tried to pin them in the right place on the colour gradient display you designed; I second-guessed myself a couple of times, but I think it's right. I don't know why I'm telling you things you already know. Um, I kept the newspaper clippings announcing our triumph. My favourite headline? "Little Orphan Rose-Annie – National Champion". Yeah. Really.

I was scouted for Washington State, Georgetown and Virginia State off the back of this; they sent a bunch of gift baskets and flowers...but a lot of it was wilted by the time we got out of the hospital...it was really creepy and weird. I'm only 16. I'm a Sophomore. That's a pretty big deal. Natalie offered to take the hilariously oversized National Champ Team trophy home first; we're gonna rotate ownership apparently, before handing it back to the school to display…I don't really want it. I won my handful of medals…and I completely lost the purpose for doing this. I was really relating to that mouldy basket of mini muffins. I've been doing gymnastics and dance and cheer all of my life, I've never known anything else.

I can't even begin to explain how heart-breaking it is to even contemplate doing this without you, mom. This was our thing. We were the only ones that got how powerful it feels, and the strength and control and freedom you get. And mostly, because it was our thing, it was us spending time together. I don't want to be here anymore.

Aunt Jenna just called me. It's time to greet the day.

I love you, Mom.

Annie x


	2. Today Will Be No Different

**08:03am – Gilbert House – First Day**

Aunt Jenna was trying her absolute best, that much was clear. It's a pretty huge adjustment to suddenly be responsible for 3 grieving teenagers; especially when you're barely out of your teens yourself. What was she supposed to do? Say no? Pawn us off on someone else? Well, unfortunately for Aunt Jenna, there was no one else; I'd heard there were a few Gilberts sprinkled up in Western Canada, but I couldn't tell you any of their names; and it seemed a blow too far to ship the orphans out of their childhood home.

"Toast." Jenna nodded with certainty, and glanced back at us, "I can make toast."

"It's all about the coffee, Aunt Jenna." Elena muttered as she poured herself a mug.

"Is there coffee?" Jeremy asked and took Elena's mug without awaiting a response. It took her a solid few seconds to realise it had been stolen. She merely huffed in retort and poured herself another.

"Oh, hey stranger." Jeremy scoffed at me, half-heartedly, and barely maintained more than a second of eye contact.

"When did you get in?" Elena asked genuinely and embraced me with her free arm.

"Last night at stupid o'clock." I uttered and yawned. I'd spent the summer in upstate New York, as a cheer camp counsellor to snotty rich kids. It was a toss-up between drowning in pity and sadness here all summer or a free ride out of this stifling town, I couldn't exactly say no. It'll look decent on college applications, I suppose, not that I really need to beef them up anymore.

"Coffee, Rosie?" Aunt Jenna offered, pouring herself a cup.

Before I could even muster the energy to shake my head, Jeremy grumbled, "Rosanna doesn't drink that poison. Don't encourage another self-righteous rant."

I scorned at my brother but did not engage. It wasn't worth it. I wasn't going to bite.

"Your first day of school and I'm totally unprepared." Jenna groaned and squinted, "Lunch money?"

"I'm good." Elena yawned. I shook my head and packed my already prepared lunch into my backpack. Jeremy shrugged and snatched the money from Jenna's hands happily; those bills definitely weren't going on tater-tots.

"Anything else?" Jenna asked, "A number two pencil? What am I missing?"

"Don't you have a big presentation today?" I asked, glancing over at the multitude of sticky notes splattered across the fridge.

"Yes, I'm meeting with my thesis advisor at…now." Jenna huffed, "Crap!"

"Then go. We'll be fine." Elena said as Jenna snatched up her books and bolted from the door. Elena turned back to Jeremy and I, glancing back and forth between us, she sighed, "You ok?"

"Don't start." Jeremy scoffed and sauntered his way out of the kitchen.

"Have to be." I sighed.

"Bonnie will be here soon, if you want a ride? We can catch up on the way." Elena uttered.

"I'm good." I replied, "Natalie's taking me."

Elena nodded kindly and left me alone in the kitchen.

 **08:25am – School Parking Lot**

"Are you ready for this?" Natalie asked as she parked up, "Ro? Hey, Rosanna?"

"Hmm?" I hummed, and shook my head, "Yeah. Sorry. Yeah."

"Just as a little heads up, my mom said there's gonna be like, some banners and stuff. And by _some,_ I mean…the school's gonna be plastered with them. I also heard something about the pipe band performing…" Natalie noted tentatively. Natalie's mom, Mrs Parkes, was a biology teacher at the high school.

"Well, that makes sense. State and National Champs." I uttered half-heartedly.

"I know, she tried to not so subtly suggest that maybe they take it easy for a while, let you settle in first, but alas, no." Natalie sighed.

"It's too big a deal for them. I get it. Why should the entire team be stifled just because I'm having a terrible time?" I uttered.

"Well, you pretty much carried the entire team. You shouldn't have to deal with all this crap. They could tone it down a notch." Natalie scoffed.

"Hey-"

"No, hey! You swept 4 medals, Ness and I grabbed one, the rest of those bitches might as well have been part of the furniture." Natalie scoffed, "It's ridiculous. Ten bucks on Carly strutting around like she invented the sport. She'd be pushing a participation medal in people's faces if such a sad thing existed! That's how sad an act she is, did you see what she posted last night about it?! So proud of my team?! It's a farce that she's captain. You should be! Or Ness. Not that cretin."

I glanced over at my stewing best friend, and cracked a smile. I laughed, "Do you need a minute?!"

"Are you sure you're alright?" Natalie asked, "I mean, not alright. But…we can turn around, leave right now, hang out at mine, or…go to the mall or something."

"Considering our faces are on that massive poster over there…I think we might be missed." I sighed, "But thanks for the offer. I have to jump back in eventually, right?"

"Just say the word and we'll high tail it outta here." Natalie declared and offered her pinkie finger in solidarity. I accepted gladly and nodded. I took a deep breath and dove back in.

 **13:02 – Mystic Falls High School**

Adam leant against the lockers and rasped, "Hey. I've been mulling over what to say for a while now, like all morning, and this is all I've come up with so far. So…hi."

I continued to sort out my textbooks and exhaled slowly. I then watched as Adam's eyes drifted past me and locked on Natalie sauntering down the hall, chomping on a massive burger. It wasn't the enviable metabolism captivating him.

"Um, it's a good start. Better than awkward silence and murmuring from a distance, which has been the dish of the day." I replied and grimaced.

"Do we congratulate you on your tumbling and half-quarter-flippy…aerial…prowess…ness…" Adam rasped half-heartedly, losing sight of Natalie briefly but catching her once again.

"You can if you so wish. I guess my parents dying did cast a pretty big shadow over the whole thing." I informed him. Adam's eyes darted back to me sharply as my words fully digested in his mind. My phone buzzed, much to my delight, though my heart flipped at the message:

 _Jenna: Ro, there's a message on the answer phone for you, FROM NYU! Call me! X_

"What's that? Your brow just plummeted." Adam asked.

I scoffed and stuffed the phone into my backpack. I uttered back, "Nothing. Natalie has Chemistry next, should that information be of any use to you."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be." I sighed with a little half-hearted scoff, "I've got this big ol' bag of 'sorrys'. I think I'm good like right through 'til college. Just be normal. Everything so far, has been top dog."

"You coming to the party?"

"Maybe."

 **16:32 – Gilbert House**

"Ro? Is that you?" Jenna hollered through the house at the sound of the front door creaking open. I froze solid and cursed the noise.

"Yeah. I gotta run. I'll be back later." I called back as I dumped my assortment of bags down at the bottom of the stairs.

"Are you serious?" Jenna asked with a puzzled look, as she appeared from the kitchen. She folded her arms and leant against the bannister, surveying me.

"Uh, I'll take 'em upstairs later? Sorry, I'm late for something." I asked tentatively, glancing down at the bags.

"Ro, the message?" Jenna asked, flapping her arms around, "Did you get my text?"

"I did." I uttered plainly.

"Why aren't you bouncing off the walls then? Screaming the house down in sheer elation?" Jenna asked, in disbelief, "You've worked your entire life for this. This is a big deal. Did you have a bad first day back or something? Are you feeling okay?"

"I don't have time for this, alright, I'm already late." I uttered quietly, internally pleading she take the hint and let it go.

"Okay. Well, we'll put it on pause for now then, but you're gonna have to consider your future and-" Jenna began but was cut off by my sharp nod and the front door closing behind me.

I snatched up my bike from the front lawn and seared my way down the street, scuffling my way up to Ivy Road. According to Google Maps, the car repair shop was at the other end of it. My dad's dust-wagon had been sat in the shop all summer. Jeremy had spent countless hours working on this car with him. I thought if I could get it working, it would lift his spirits, even slightly.

I propped my bike up against the fence and trudged through the parking lot, storming up to the haggard building before me. It was closed due to unforeseen circumstances.

"OH GREAT! Just what I needed!" I scorned, flopped my arms down in defeat and scanned around the empty parking lot, "Sorry for any inconvenience! Sorry? Sorry! APOLOGY NOT ACCEPTED."

I parked myself down on the trunk of a car, pulled my legs up to my chest and scorned into the distance. I needed this. I needed one thing to go right today. I dropped my grip on my legs momentarily, and scoffed, "Unforeseen? You couldn't be bothered coming into work today, COOP?! Pffft. Jesus, buddy! POOR SHOW!"

A heartbeat later, what sounded like a skateboard trundled out from underneath the car I had slammed myself down on. I jumped down off the car in fright. The skateboard was manoeuvred by a familiar face, smirking in his mechanic's overalls. He clambered to his feet laughing as he wiped his greasy hands, "You know, you're the one that's actually late. But, I'm sorry to scare ya."

Still clutching my hand to my heart, I scorned back at him, "Jesus Christ, Matt! By like ten minutes."

Matt smirked and shrugged his shoulders in jest as he passed me and disappeared into the office, "Or an hour, give or take."

I made a groan of acknowledgement and took the opportunity to slyly glance a little under the other cars lined up, who else had heard my mad rant?

"Well, your tardiness gave me a chance to check out the wheel alignment one more time." The beautiful one reappeared at the doorway and folded up his arms across his chest. My eyes were immediately drawn to his toned arms, I shook my head and uttered, "It's alright?"

The boy nodded and tossed over the keys, "Can't help but ask, why are you doing this? You won't get more than another ten miles outta this thing, it's gonna overheat way before, why choose to keep this heap of trash going? It's almost cruel."

I smirked as I caught the keys, "You can ask. I don't need to tell."

"Mystery. Intrigue. Annoying." He scratched his head and scoffed, "You tryin to flog it on craigslist or something? You'll be back, bawling; within the next day or so."

"It's been gathering dust for a long time now." I explained as I swung the door open and parked myself inside the car, getting a feel for it, my heart lightened, it was exactly as I remembered it. I sighed and smiled to the guy, "So I'm gonna fix it up for Jeremy. Even if it just goes down the block."

"You know _anything_ about fixing cars?"

"Well-not exactly."

He raised an eyebrow, in what I'd like to think was quiet admiration, and scoffed, "So, that's a no, then."

I nodded and turned the car over. It spluttered and wheezed but eventually came to life. A massive grin spread across my face and I bit my lip to contain it.

"You need a hand; you know where to find me. I'll see you soon, Little One." He tapped the roof of the car and watched me drive away in my brand new terrifically old car.

 **17:17 – Gilbert House**

"What is this?" Jeremy asked as I pulled into the garage.

I turned off the engine and stepped out, beaming. "It runs." I grinned back at my twin brother but his expression did not mirror mine. "I've had it fixed up, for you. Matt got it running. It's still a little temperamental but-"

"Can there just be ONE THING that doesn't get taken away from me? Is that seriously so much to ask?" Jeremy scorned.

"Excuse me?"

"This was our thing, Ro." He spat and turned to leave.

"Jeremy, what the hell?" I scorned, storming after him back into the house, "I did this _for_ you! It was never gonna run with you and dad poking around at it, neither of you knew what you were doing!"

"Exactly!" Jeremy barked back. I froze in my steps, taken aback at the outburst. Jeremy scoffed and shook his head, "I don't expect you to understand what that car means to me, Ro-bot, it's outside your emotion range, I get it. Just go back to handstand camp, and stop trying to fix me."

I stood there for a moment longer, in complete shock; my eyes lined with tears as my lower lip began to tremble. I waited for it to pass. I wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of seeing me cry. The last words I'd exchanged with my brother before I left for New York were just as kind. I'd caught him dipping into my medication from the crash; he wasn't in the car with us, he sure as hell didn't need it. He snapped back that I was back on track, jumping for joy again, I didn't need them, no one would need them if we hadn't been driving back from my stupid handstand competition.

 **18:54 – Gilbert House**

"I'm meeting Bonnie at the Grill." Elena responded to Jenna's raised eyebrow. She was dressed in a strappy top, tight jeans and darker makeup than usual. She hadn't rocked that look in a while; the Caroline Forbes Carbon-Copy look.

"Ok, have fun." Jenna smiled as she passed and then froze, spinning abruptly to face her oldest niece, "Wait. I got this. Don't stay out late, it's a school night."

"Well done, Aunt Jenna." Elena smirked and noted my quiet presence in the hall.

"And you-" Jenna said, turning back to face me as I tried to sneak past her. I sighed and faced her. I just wanted to eat my bowl of cut up fruit in peace, maybe watch some YouTube videos, stalk Elena's mystery man on Instagram. I bet he was too blasé to take selfies; his feed was probably littered with moody sunrises and kitsch décor shots.

"I'm not avoiding. I'm thinking, okay?" I uttered as I passed her and began to ascend the stairs.

"You coming?" Elena asked one last time.

"If you don't go out and have fun, I'm following you up those stairs and talking at you…all night." Jenna declared. She was not joking.

"Fine." I uttered.

"I'll wait…while you change." Elena uttered back, and sauntered into the living room. I glanced down at my outfit and frowned…what's wrong with this? I considered my outfit in the mirror; ripped jeans and a plain black tee was clearly not appropriate party attire.

"Ro? What about that burgundy dress? The one from Bonnie's birthday?" Elena called up a few minutes later.

"That's yours." I called back.

"Like I care, I wanna go." Elena called, "And the leather jacket! Oh, and the booties. The H&M ones. It's muddy out."

"Where are they?"

"Should be in my room, under the bed, maybe? Wear tights, it's cold out."

"You two are so cute! Look at you! Sharing clothes." Jenna called out chirpily.


	3. Weird Shell-People

**21:09 – Back to School Party – Woodland Park**

"Try and have fun." Elena whispered to me as I sauntered past over to Natalie.

"Hey!" Natalie smiled and embraced me, "I thought you weren't coming?"

"Jenna twisted my arm. And then Elena kicked me whilst I was down." I uttered back.

"I like the dress! Where's it from?" She asked.

"It's Elena's."

"So, she dragged you out, and she dressed you up super cute too. Terrible sister. Come on, let's get you a drink!" Natalie scoffed and led the way over to the drinks table, "Ew, everything's totally open."

"What?"

"It might be a new school year, but the idiots are still idiots, just one year older, none-the-wiser."

"Ladies?" Adam bowed and produced bottles of beer from his rucksack. I took the lukewarm bottle hesitantly, convinced my freezing hands would solve that problem.

"Our hero!" Natalie beamed up at him and kissed his cheek. Okay, that's new.

"Adam, where's the stash man? Your brother come through or not?" Michael hollered over at him.

"Excuse me, ladies." Adam nodded and brought his rucksack of beer over to the table.

"So…that's new." I whispered to Natalie.

"Pffft. He brought beer, that's all."

"You know he's been obsessed with you since 3rd Grade."

"I know! I know. He got a little cute over the summer, that's all I'm saying."

 **22:37 – Woodland Park**

Matt clambered into the ambulance after his sister. I stood with mine and together we watched it drive away into the night. Police officers were making their rounds, taking the names of drunken youths, probing them for the names of tonight's alcohol suppliers. They actively avoided us. I wondered how long our free pass would run for? I mean, we'd have to stop being so desperately sad at some point, right? Who determined the expiration date?

"You okay?" Elena asked Jeremy, and rubbed his shoulder. He winced and recoiled at her touch, chugging his beer and swaying in retort.

"I called Jenna, she's on her way." I uttered.

Jeremy scrunched up his brow and shook his head once in derision. He scorned, "Of course you did."

"Those people in uniforms? Last time I checked, they're the police." Elena sighed.

Jeremy sighed, took one last sip and then tossed the bottle over his head.

"People are going to stop giving you breaks, Jer." I exhaled sharply and stood right in front of him, "They just don't care anymore. They don't remember that our parents are dead, because they've got their own lives to deal with. The rest of the world has moved on."

"Exactly, you should at least try to as well." Elena uttered to him.

"You should follow your own advice, Elena." I sighed and turned to face her, "I've seen you in the cemetery writing in your diary every day. Is that-is that supposed to be you moving on?"

"At least she's not acting like some psycho robot with no emotions. You haven't taken one day off from training, and you bail on us for the summer, you swan about like nothing even happened! What the hell are you trying to prove with that?!" Jeremy scorned at me.

"Someone has to keep it together whilst you two crumple into tiny balls of sadness!" I scorned at him pettily.

"No one asked you to play the martyr. Be a human being, just this once. Even our parents drowning at the bottom of the lake doesn't deter the Robot from her course!" Jeremy spat.

"Mom and dad wouldn't have wanted this!" Elena barked over us.

"It's like she doesn't even care!" Jeremy spat.

"Jeremy!" Elena scorned, "You can't say that!"

"I-I don't care?! You are not the only one going through hell, Jeremy! Get over yourself for five fucking seconds!" I managed to huff out, wiping my eyes furiously, and before I knew it, shoving Jeremy harshly in the chest. Elena and Jeremy's eyes widened at the sharp sound of a swear word escaping my lips. My chest was rising and falling rapidly, as I struggled to mumble out the words, "I am so scared…that if I stop, for one second…I'm gonna shatter. Just because I don't break things, or write moody poetry in graveyards, or get high off my nut every night, doesn't mean that I don't want to! That doesn't mean that I'm not hurting! You know what, do whatever the hell you want, I don't care. I'm done with this. Did it ever occur to you that maybe I'm not reaching out because THIS is what I get in return?!"

"Ro-" Jeremy uttered.

"NO." I scoffed, "Ro-bot OUT!"

 **01:16 – Adam Haye's After Party**

I was a little emotional, that much is true. I'd bottled up everything. I was primed to explode. That after party probably wasn't the best place for me to be, but at that point, more than a few beers in, it was so much easier to blame the pain I was feeling solely on my brother; heck, he'd done the same thing with me. He was being an ass, so I was going to show him. I'm no robot. I can have fun. I can drink myself into oblivion and feel nothing too.

 **07:04 – The Next Morning – Lockwood Manor**

"What?" I winced as I opened one eye with great effort.

"Morning Sunshine!" Tyler's voice sang out directly in my face, "Or should I say morning you complete and utter klutz!"

My eyebrows furrowed and I retorted by pushing myself up onto my elbows but winced in pain.

"Okay, okay, hey, you should uh, just take it easy." Tyler gently encouraged me back down.

"What the hell happened?" I glanced around the room, this wasn't my bedroom, "Where am I?!"

Tyler scrunched up his face and scoffed, awkwardly, "You fell down the stairs, at Adam's party. Man, kid, you were wasted."

I raised an eyebrow and stared back blankly at the guy.

"I know. I know. Saved your life, a brush with death. It's a lot to digest. You owe me big time, but I am a humble saviour, I shan't hold it over your head."

"Why aren't I in the hospital, then?" I bored my eyes into his.

"Well, I uh, hmm, you were fine, so I thought you could just chill here. And you know, maybe people would think we'd banged when you left in the morning, which would really help out the ol' street cred." He grinned.

"And where is here?!"

"My house."

"Tyler…I…I don't remember anything." I uttered, shook my head in confusion and fear.

"You were tanning the rum like there was no tomorrow. I just figured you didn't wanna risk the wrath of Jenna like that." Tyler explained plainly. I glanced down at the clothes I was wearing; an oversized t-shirt and shorts. I didn't recognise them…they were…HIS?! I sprang up out of the bed and coughed as I stumbled to my feet, clutching my chest. It felt as though I'd been smacked square in the chest by a bus. I swayed a little but Tyler grabbed me just in time, holding me steady as I found my balance.

"Whoa! Slow down a goddamn-"

"DID YOU DRESS ME?!" I barked and slapped his hands off of me. I staggered back, folding my arms fiercely across my chest.

Tyler snorted, "Oh! No! No. That was…well, that was my mom."

I kept my arms clung across me and glanced around the room.

"Oh my god, it just gets worse and worse." I uttered in a small voice. I painted a picture with his words but they still didn't add up. I ran my hand through my hair, subtly checking for a bump, waiting for the winch. Nothing. I nodded and flopped my arm back over my other, uttering, "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Tyler uttered in a tone more serious than I had heard from him before.

I gathered up my belongings and began the long and shameful walk home. I waited like a total creep for everyone to leave the house before sneaking in. I'd already missed the first three periods of school, I considered checking out for the entire day, but soldiered on and appeared sometime during lunch.

 **16:03 – Ivy Road**

"Come on. No!" I huffed and slapped the dashboard, "No, baby, no!"

The Camaro huffed and wheezed as I pulled her off the road, eventually wailing out in pain and cutting off in defeat.

"Are you serious?!" I screamed and slammed the car, dropping my head in my hands. I stepped out into the torrential downpour and yanked the hood of the car up. A puff of grey smoke blew into my face as I huddled underneath; after recoiling in shock, I hid under the hood once more, furiously beavering away, searching for a solution. I had no idea what I was doing; was I making it worse? How much worse could it feasibly get?

"OWCH!" I yelped and snapped my hand away; I danced around flapping about, opening my palm up to the icy cold rain. Everything under here was lava.

"Need a hand?" A familiar voice rumbled as he pulled up next to me.

I took a solid second before turning to face him. I flapped my arms to my sides and blinked in the rain, "No." I scorned.

"Get in." Matt said plainly as he leant over and pushed his passenger door open.

"No. I'm not leaving my car out here."

"No one's gonna wanna steal that."

"I'm good, Matt."

"I'll drop you off outta the rain and haul it back to mine, see what we can do, alright? Just lock it up and get in."

 **18:14 – Matt Donovan's house**

"What's with you and shit cars?" Matt scoffed.

"My parents died." I said to his brilliant blue eyes that were fixated on me, "And if you want the sad truth, I don't have anything solid to cling on to anymore."

"It's hardly solid-"

"I know that." I cut him off, "It's not about a car. I can tell you every story behind these dents and chips in the paintwork; I worked an entire summer solid for this car; and that's nice and all. But I'm clinging on to the people we were before all of this. We're these weird shell-people who don't know how to be there for each other. Who would?! We're just bumping into each other in the kitchen, there's no one guiding us, we're all just winging it. I want my brother back; I miss him. I want my sister to care about something, to yell at us, tell us we're being jerks."

"I don't want to get your hopes up, the odds are not in your favour, okay? But, regardless of that, he's gonna come around. We all deal with shit in our ways. Yours may be ploughing on, his might be taking the scenic route. But we all end up in the same place."

"He was _so_ mad that I'd fixed the car."

"He's not gonna see it from your perspective. He's clouded by his own pain, but that'll lift."

"It was…it was like I did it outta spite. How could he jump to that?" I uttered, chucking the spanner onto the bench, furiously choking back the tears as once again my breathing turned erratic. I breathily exhaled, "Oh God." I gripped my side and wavered.

Something about my pathetic display compelled Matt to rise up, throw his own tools down and fall in. His strong arms surrounded me, permitting me to let go and feel it.

"It's okay." I whispered.

"Bullshit." He drawled and stepped very close, "Where does it hurt?" His piercing blue eyes saw right through mine. Matt wiped away a rogue tear and tucked a stray hair behind my ear, his hand lingered on my cheek for a beat longer and I turned away from his touch abruptly.

"I'm fine. Embarrassment stings the most." I uttered and dragged myself back to the car. It wasn't a lie. I felt…fine.

"You know it's kinda funny that you're sitting on so many trophies for being all graceful and poised, and you take a tumble like that down a few steps." Matt chuckled.

The very second Matt's head disappeared under the hood once more, I drifted out of view and lifted my shirt. It was gone. The bruising against my ribs, gone. **It had happened again.**


	4. I Don't Know You

I sauntered through the back door, exhausted from practice, and dumped my stuff in the kitchen. Jenna and Elena were in there, sulking, making sundaes. They both offered a cursory glance my way before continuing with their discussion. It didn't take long to suss out they were discussing Stefan, yet again.

"He's on the rebound and has raging family issues." Elena sighed and struggled to squirt out the last dribble of chocolate sauce.

Jenna noted, pensively, "Well at least it's an ex-girlfriend. Wait 'til you date a guy with mommy issues, or cheating issues, or amphetamine issues."

Elena scoffed and turned to me, "How was practice?"

Our conversation was cut short by Jeremy stumbling through the front door. He caught sight of all three women in his life glaring back at him, and rolled his eyes before slamming the door and sauntering over to the stairs.

"Jeremy." Jenna scorned and stormed after him, "Jeremy, where were you?"

Jeremy scoffed, "More stoner stories? Look, Jenna, I get it, you were cool once and so that's cool."

Elena and I exchanged a glance, and heard Jeremy stomp up the stairs. I began unloading my kit into the laundry basket, and Elena began clearing up her sundae supplies; we were both rather feeble in our tasks, our focus predominantly on eavesdropping.

"Oh, no no no!" Jenna scorned and tossed her apple at him, thumping against his back.

"OW! WHY?!" Jeremy whined, "Why did you do that?"

"Listen up! Quit ditching class or you're grounded. No discussion." Jenna barked.

"Parental authority, I like it! Sleep tight." Jeremy giggled and staggered up the stairs. He was clearly stoned out of his mind, again.

Elena turned to me and asked, "Are you coming to the comet?"

I thought for a moment. Yeah, the last time you dragged me out against my will, we all got into an explosive argument and I got so wasted I fell down the stairs and don't remember anything else from that night.

"I don't think so." I sighed, "I'm so tired. I think I'm gonna have an early night."

"The comet's tomorrow night." Elena said, with a raised eyebrow. I couldn't muster up the energy for another excuse, so I left, silently.

 **20:17 – The Night of the Comet – Mystic Falls Town Square**

"I have to give Adam back his jacket, two seconds!" Natalie smiled and sauntered away.

"I'll get the candles." I nodded and walked over to the stand, "Two please."

The girl behind the counter smiled extra sweetly. I was confused, trying to place her. Did I know her?

"She lives! You know I've heard so much about you, I feel like I already know you." The girl smiled sweetly and shook my hand. I glanced back at her, thoroughly confused.

"I'm sorry, I didn't catch your name?" I said politely.

"Kimberley Lockwood. Tyler's cousin. I was there the night you…turned up, but you were out of it, of course." Kimberley said, "This is Amber Lennon, my best friend. You've made quite a splash in the little pond of gymnastics."

"…thanks." I uttered and glanced over at the candles.

"Don't be so modest, it's so impressive what you've managed to accomplish, with so many set-backs!" Kimberley beamed. I nodded back in uncomfortable response. Her face took a contorted turn, "I hope you're feeling better after your fall? You had us all mighty worried."

"Right. Much." I uttered, still stinging with embarrassment that Mrs Lockwood had dressed me whilst I was out for the count.

"So, what's with you and Matt?" Amber uttered, with a disparaging look on her face.

"What do you mean?" I asked

"Amber." Kimberley rolled her eyes and scoffed in disbelief, "I am so sorry, Rosanna. She can be so embarrassing. Just ignore her."

"I mean, are you guys hooking up or-" Amber said.

"Oh. No." I uttered, shyly, glancing behind me to check there wasn't a line to witness my flushed cheeks, "He's been helping me out with my car. It's a vintage number, it's way above my remit. We are, uh, just friends, I think."

"You think you're just friends?" Amber said, raising her eyebrow in delight.

"I'm not-that's not-" I stuttered.

"You're putting words in the poor girl's mouth." Kimberley scorned playfully.

"He's my friend. I've known him since I was this big. We do friendly stuff, hang out, and fix the car and stuff." I uttered.

"Friendly stuff, huh?" Amber chuckled, "Everything sounds so innocent when you say it! You are the cutest. Honestly."

I merely sighed in return and glanced around the square. Where the hell are you, Natalie?

"Well, between us girls, I say go for it. Elena dumped him. He's fair game, and he definitely has the hots for you. It's all over his face. I always catch him looking at you." Kimberley grinned.

"He-He's not. I'm like, just in his line of sight, like in the way or something." I cringed.

"He's a hot-blooded male, Rosanna. Of course, he does, just look at you. You're gorgeous!" Amber grinned.

"Um, thank you."

"Do you think he's attractive?" Amber asked.

"She must do, she has eyes! What a question, bear! You do, don't you?" Kimberley giggled.

"I guess, he's a good-looking guy." I uttered, "Can I just get those candles?"

"See, I told you, Amber, Matt is moving on from Elena, he's dipping into the kiddie pool, so you definitely have the green light to flirt with Tyler right in front of his face. If he's gonna bring his latest squeeze, and flaunt her right in front of you, there's no reason why you can't face fuck his friend. That'll get his attention!" Kimberley snapped, his sickly-sweet grin turning into a smug one.

"I'm gonna…go anywhere but here." I uttered.

"It was really nice to put a face to all the rumours, Rosanna." Kimberley said with a sickeningly sweet smile plastered back onto her face, "You're nothing like what they say: I can even say I saw the Ro-bot blush!"

"No one will believe you." Amber scoffed.

"What?" Natalie scoffed as she appeared at my side.

"Rosanna the Robot? It's cute, right? I think her junkie brother came up with that one." Kimberley asked, feigning disbelief, and then bursting into raucous giggles.

"Go suck a dick, Kim." Natalie scorned, snatched up the candles and nudged me to leave with her. We stormed off across the square, far away from the bitches, but the heat in my cheeks did not dissipate so easily. I was beyond embarrassed; that one stupid slip up was here to stay, everyone was going to hear about it, if Kimberley had anything to do with it.

"Wow. That was brutal." Natalie uttered.

"I'm gonna go." I uttered back and handed her my candle.

"What?" Natalie hissed, "Because of them? Ro, come on. You can't! The comet's not even-"

"No. I'm just…I'll see you tomorrow. Okay?" I offered up feebly and sauntered away before she had the chance to plead her case. I headed for the Main Street. The night was clear, perfect for walking home with a head flooded with thoughts.

"Hey. Rosanna! Hey! Are you bailing?" Stefan called after me, as I cleared the square.

"…Stefan, right?" I uttered, glancing at him uncertainly. We'd not actually been introduced yet, it was a little jarring to hear him call after me.

"Yeah, Elena's…that way." Stefan rasped and nudged over his shoulder.

"Thank you, but I'm heading that way. Home." I uttered quietly, "Have a good night."

"Are you okay?" Stefan rasped and noted my uncomfortable stance, "Sorry, you just look a little upset."

"Wow, even in this lighting?" I scoffed and shuffled awkwardly, "No, I'm good."

"Do you…" Stefan began and surveyed me. His eyes were captivating, I could almost feel his gaze, "Would you like me to walk you home?"

I glanced back at him and then over towards Elena, she was stood with Caroline and Bonnie on the far side of the square. Her friends were laughing, but she was surveying the area, not so subtly. I smiled at Stefan and shook my head, "It's okay. I think you have more pressing matters to attend to."

Stefan sighed and smiled back, following my eye line to meet her.

"She's gonna play the 'oh no, it's complicated' card, but don't be discouraged, she just wants you to stand your ground, stick around, convince her you're really in it."

"I am." Stefan nodded, pensively.

"Show her." I smiled at him and turned to leave.

 **21:03 – Gilbert House**

"Jer?" I called out as I ascended the stairs. Someone was rummaging around in his room, shadows were flickering on to the landing.

"No, it's me!" Jenna scoffed and greeted me wildly, "The hypocrite patrol!"

"What are you doing?" I asked, tentatively leaning against the doorframe.

"I've become my worst nightmare." Jenna scoffed and continued scanning the room, "The authority figure who has to violate a 16-year-old's privacy. Jackpot! I see the hiding places haven't gotten any more creative." Jenna had dragged a bong out of a boot. She was frantic.

"What uh, what brought this on?" I asked.

"Your ass-hat of a history teacher shamed me good yesterday." Jenna scoffed.

"You got Tanner-ed. Been there." I laughed lightly.

"'Discover the impossible, Ms Summers'" Jenna mocked him, but her expression quickly turned to one of defeat, "Got it. Thanks, like I didn't already know I was screwing up!"

"You're not screwing up, Aunt Jenna." I uttered back, seriously, rising from my lethargic position.

"Yes, I am!" Jenna sighed, harshly, "You know why? Because I'm not her. She made everything look so easy. You know, high school, marriage, having you guys. I can't do it. I'm gonna say or do the wrong thing, and he's gonna get worse, and it's gonna be my fault. It's impossible. And you! You, I worry about even more. It used to be that-that your mom struggled to shut you up; my little Rosie, she'd say, you should hear some of the stuff she comes out with, her ideas and her dreams, they could captivate the faintest of hearts. She marches around bossing Jeremy about, and he follows her. She's a leader."

I sat down next to my Aunt on Jeremy's unmade bed and dropped my shoulders, and exhaled. I uttered, "This is just the fear talking. You're a little scared, that's all. We all are."

"I don't know what you are." Jenna uttered, "I bribed Elena to drag you out, to get you to talk. And given that all I got was a detailed account of Stefan's outfit, and asked to decode what he meant by this and that; she owes me 20 bucks. You need to tell me what is going on with you, so that I can try my damnedest to make it okay. You are allowed to not be okay, okay?"

"Okay." I uttered and embraced her tightly.


	5. You Were Done

**10:13 – Mystic Falls High School – Girl's Bathroom**

"What the hell is this?" Carly scorned, pushing a letter into my face.

"Can't you read?" I uttered half-heartedly, as I washed my hands. That was my letter of resignation as co-captain of the dance team, as a starting varsity cheerleader, and as a member of the State Championship Gymnastic Team. I had handed that letter in to the Phys-Ed department before any of the teachers had arrived, I didn't want to risk enduring pleas to remain, to have my resolve chipped away.

"It's a brand-new season, Ro. And the last for the likes of Ness and Allie. We are the strongest we've ever been. We are starting out on top; untouchable." Carly uttered, with a serious tone I could've sworn was new to her.

"And I'm sure that's where you'll end up." I replied and brushed past her, reaching for the paper towels.

Carly huffed and glanced under the stalls; we were alone. She rattled back, "I wanted to do this the nice way, okay? That can go on record. I wanted you to see reason. I wanted to write this off as just another stage of your crushing sadness thing, but we don't have time for that."

She rummaged into her pocket and pulled out her phone, turning it long ways to show me a video. It was a video of Jeremy: Jeremy and one of his ratbag friends keying Mr Tanner's car; laughing their heads off. I snatched out for the phone, but she anticipated as much.

"Okay, so you still care about your train-wreck of a brother, that's nice. That's real heart-warming." Carly scoffed as she tucked the phone away in her pocket, "But you don't care about your team, or your friends. You really think any half-decent college will take Natalie on her grades? No. It's a new year; it's a fresh start, for everyone. And it would be such a shame for your brother to start out the new year proving everyone right."

"You bitch." I uttered.

"Call me what you want, Rosanna. I can take it." Carly scorned back, "I'm the one looking out for my friends, for my team, and for all our futures, yours included. You're throwing away everything we've worked for, and for what? For a sulk? For attention?"

"You enjoy the perks of everything _I_ have worked for, and don't want that to change. You're lazy, you're pathetic, and you're only looking out for yourself." I scorned and stormed out.

"Be at practice or the video goes viral." Carly scorned after me.

 **16:30 – Mystic Falls High School – Cheerleading Practice**

"What do they have on you?" Stefan drawled.

I jumped out of my skin and clasped a hand over my thundering heart. He was picking at a blade of grass absentmindedly from his position perched up in the stands above me. I'd been muttering to myself, grumbling away. I was mortified at the possibility of someone overhearing me; as if I wasn't already a prime target for gossip in the halls.

"You scared me." I rasped awkwardly, turning back to continue searching through my gym bag for a hair tie.

"You said cheerleading was for self-obsessed airheads. You were done. You said you were done. You were _so_ goddamn done." Stefan noted. I glanced up at him with a raised brow; he was now leaning against the railing, tickled by my disgruntled expression.

"Changing one's mind is hardly a sin. And it's kind of rude to listen in on other people's conversations, you know." I scorned as I tied my hair back.

"And you were talking to…" Stefan uttered.

I scoffed, snatched up my water bottle and sauntered around the side of the stands, heading for practice.

 **17:14 – Mystic Falls High School – Cheerleading Practice**

"She's never late." Bonnie sighed and glanced around the football field, searching for any sign of bouncing blonde locks.

"Ro, you're gonna have to start without her." Vanessa said, tapping me on the shoulder as I stretched out. I sighed and asked them to give her 5 more minutes.

"This is ridiculous. We only have the field 'til 5!" Carly whined. She met my piercing glare and muttered, "She's wasted enough time already, just start the damn run, Ro."

A dramatic cough drew my attention away before I said anything stupid. I was surprised to find my sister as the culprit.

Bonnie exclaimed, and collided with her, "Oh my god! You're here!"

"Yep! I can't be sad girl forever. The only way to get things back to the way they were are to do things that were." Elena smiled. Jenna was doing that amazing trick again where she spoke through Elena. I rolled my eyes and Elena insisted, "Oh, and Bonnie, you're coming to dinner tonight!"

"I am?" Bonnie asked.

"Mmmhmm. Just us girls…and Stefan." Elena declared and changed her tone instantly at Bonnie's fallen expression, "You have to give him a chance."

"But tonight's no good." Bonnie noted and cleared her throat, awkwardly, "Have you seen Caroline? I texted her like a hundred times."

"Don't change the subject, Bonnie Bennett." Elena said, firmly, "You're going to be there."

"Fine! I'll go." Bonnie groaned.

"Good." Elena grinned.

"Rein in the enthusiasm, Bon." I scoffed and Bonnie shot me a look and a subtle shake of the head. I cleared my throat and changed the subject back to the matter at hand, "Seriously though, where is Caroline?"

"I don't know. It's not like her." Elena replied.

"I'll try her again." Bonnie sighed and got her phone out.

"Uh…" Elena uttered and pointed at the convertible skidding into the parking lot.

"Oh my god." I managed to huff out and averted my eyes. Caroline made out with the driver, very enthusiastically.

"That must be the mystery guy from the grill." Bonnie whispered to us.

"That's not a mystery guy. That's Damon Salvatore." Elena noted.

"Salvatore? As in Stefan?" I hissed back.

"I got the other brother. Hope you don't mind!" Caroline giggled as she sashayed up to us and then sauntered past to address her team, "Sorry I'm late girls, I uh, was busy! All right, let's start with the double pike herkey hurdler, what do you say?"

Elena exchanged a glare with Damon, who merely winked and sped away from the school. What the hell was that about?

"1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, 6, 7, 8." Caroline repeated over and over. She wasn't partaking in the exercise, merely barking orders. She scoffed and called out, "Elena, sweetie? Why don't you just observe today? 'kay?" She grinned at my sister, sweetly, before barking back at the team, "Keep going! Okay. Do it again, from the top, let's go. And 5, 6, 7, 8!"

 **Mystic Falls High School – Pep Rally**

Tyler and Jeremy got into it at the pep rally, right before the game; they were full on pummelling each other. Vickie was screaming at Tyler to stop. Stefan stepped in; yanking Tyler off of my brother. Jeremy picked up a broken bottle and swung for Tyler. The look on his face seemed to suggest he wasn't aware of what he'd picked up, but he knew full well that could've gone another way. Matt slammed into Tyler, pushing him out of the situation, and Elena ran to Stefan's side after berating Jeremy. She was clambering after his sliced open hand, and froze as she clawed it open. He was fine. My blood ran cold. I'd seen it too. His hand was bleeding profusely **and then…nothing. Just like me…faster, but just like me.**

"Hello!" Caroline sang in my face, and waved her pompoms about, "I've been calling your name out, you weirdo, come on! Last minute drills!"

I shook my head and nodded, "Sorry. I'm coming."

 **Post-Game – Boys Locker Room**

"Tanner's MIA. I think he had a little bit too much beer." I heard Tyler joke. I had my direction, I scoured the boy's locker room.

"Whoa!" Someone huffed at my sudden appearance.

"Don't talk to me right now, all right? I'm pissed at you." I heard Matt scorn back, and followed his disdain.

"Dude, I mean…girl, you lost?" Someone scoffed.

"What's your problem?" Tyler chuckled.

"What's my-You're my problem!" Matt scorned back, "You're a bully. A frickin' 12-year-old bully, man, and I'm sick of it."

"What the hell was that?" I scorned and pushed into Tyler. He stepped back into the lockers, out of shock, not out of force.

"Is she for real?!" Tyler scoffed back, glancing around at the audience the arrival of a lady had drawn.

"You're seriously that insecure? You need to beat up on the new guy? Pummel Jeremy? What the hell are you trying to prove?! Tyler, the big man, taking swings for no fricking reason?!" I accentuated each point by shoving into him. Tyler snatched at both my wrists to stop me, but Matt stepped in.

"Don't touch her, man." He uttered, as he pushed me back.

"She's the psycho bitch _attacking me_ in the _guys_ locker room?!" Tyler scoffed.

"But that's what we fricking do now, Tyler! We get our teeny tiny man-feelings hurt and we lash out!" I roared back at him, fighting against Matt's hold to get to him.

"He's not worth it, Ro, back off." Matt groaned.

"Matty to the rescue once again." Tyler mocked, rolling his eyes, "I hate to tell you this man, but Elena dumped your ass, you don't owe her nothing." Matt slammed Tyler fiercely into the lockers. I stumbled back a little. Tyler whined, "Are you for real?! You want to hit me? I'm on your team!"

"This was over the line, even for you." Matt scorned and grabbed my hand, ushering me out with him.

"You can let go now, Matt." I groaned and slipped out of his grasp, once we were finally outside.

"I gotta be sure you're not gonna sprint back in there and finish the job." Matt laughed lightly.

"No." I whispered and shook my head, "No, I'm not."

"I think there's something going on with him, there has to be. Sure, he's always been a dick, but this is next level." Matt noted.

I turned to face him sharply, "How can you defend him? After everything he's done? What about Vickie?"

"I can't control what my sister decides to do, just like you can't control your brother."

"That's-that's not even-" I muttered, avoiding his gaze.

"Ro." Matt uttered, his expression had fallen sharply.

"What-Matt?"

"Go. Get help." Matt barked and ran behind me, towards Tanner.


	6. 1 Out Of 100

**Aftermath – Mystic Falls High School Gymnasium**

"Hey, you need a ride?" Matt asked as I stuffed pompoms into a duffel bag. I jerked at the sound of his voice, it shook me out of my own mind, back to the present. "Sorry." He smirked at my reaction, "I'm making a habit outta that."

"It's okay. I think the whole wild animal attacking people literally like, right over there, thing, has me a little jumpy. I'm…I'm sorry…Yes, a ride would be nice. Thank you." I nodded awkwardly, and he took the bag out of my hands.

Matt and I had discovered Mr Tanner's mangled body in the parking lot only a short while ago. The police and ambulance staff had rapidly cleared the scene and cordoned off the area. Word spread like wildfire, there was a mess of parents flooding down early to take their kids home.

"Might have been quicker walking." I uttered as we sat in the traffic.

Matt exhaled sharply and nodded, "Yeah. You probably shouldn't while that thing's still out there, you know. That was pretty rough. I'm sorry you had to see it."

I lent against the window of Matt's truck, and watched the red tail lights before us pull out of the lot at a glacial pace. We were finally on our way home.

"You were amazing out there, Ro. You always are, I guess." Matt said, genuinely, breaking a moment of silence between us.

I scoffed and smiled, "Thanks. National Champ's got a reputation to uphold."

"Yeah, I heard something about that." Matt laughed.

"It's kind of hard to escape; my face is plastered all over town." I scoffed.

"It's not a bad view." Matt laughed.

A huff of laughter escaped from me; my eyes were fixed on the passing streetlights.

"Annie, did Kimberley say something to you at that comet party?" Matt uttered, glancing over at me, briefly, before returning to the road.

He called me Annie. It made sense. Only my mom ever called me that. It was a nickname. Because we were friends. Friends abbreviate friend's names all the time. There was nothing else to read in to here, because we were friends. Friendly friends. What would I call him? His name was already a nickname!

"We…crossed paths." I uttered awkwardly.

"I see."

"She…is…" I began but was cut off sharply.

"A total bitch."

"I was gonna say 'totally hung up on you'." I noted, biting my lip.

"Amber there too?"

"Mmmhmm."

"Phew, you got the full works." Matt scoffed, "So, they stepped out of line?"

"Um, no. It's fine." I uttered as Matt turned up onto my street.

"Okay. If you say so." Matt sighed and pulled up outside my house.

"Thank you, for the ride, I'll see ya." I smiled and unbuckled my seat belt, feeling it slip through my fingers as he refused to relent.

"Natalie said they were a tad on the vicious side." Matt asked, "What did they say?"

"It's fine, they were just having fun." I uttered and met his firm gaze. I hesitated and offered up, "It's just a little weird talking to a stranger who's potentially seen you naked, but you don't remember any of it…"

"Ro." Matt uttered.

"They just asked what you and I were doing, that's all."

"What we're doing?"

"…yeah."

"And what'd you say?" Matt smiled as he lent against the steering wheel, effortlessly.

"I said…what I said was…we're fixing up a car together."

"Uh huh." Matt hummed.

"And it's fixed now, and that is the end of that sentence." I uttered as he closed the gap between us ever more.

"So, that's what we're doing." Matt drawled, dangerously close to me now.

"That is…what." I uttered, staring back into his eyes intently. Matt glanced down at my lips, travelled up as my heart skipped a beat, and then, with a smirk on his, lent across to meet them. He kissed me gently at first, his palm brushed against my cheek, before finding its way to the nape of my neck. At first, I was completely taken aback but found myself falling into him, even kissing him back. He led my hands around his neck and let go as his followed suit, exploring down my body, finding the small of my back and pulling me over, closer. It was…It felt like the first spark before the fire erupts.

I pushed against his chest and lent back, raising a hand to my lips. My mind took a moment to catch up with my actions. I couldn't explain why I'd done that.

He respected my break away and spread open his arms, "I'm sorry, I..."

"It's alright." I uttered breathily, "It's been a crazy night. Um…Jenna's gonna…think I was eaten too, by this point."

"Let me-" He uttered.

"Nope. No. Got it. Thank you." I uttered awkwardly and all but ran from his truck.

 **Later that week**

Carol Lockwood had pressured Elena to locate our father's old pocket watch. She was displaying old antiquities from the town's founding families at the Founder's Ball. Jeremy had thrown a hissy fit, and stolen the watch, claiming his righteous ownership of the piece, forgetting the simple fact that this was merely a loan. Elena caved at the last minute, and returned the piece to Jeremy, in a sense extending an olive branch to him. I asked her why she'd caved. Elena whispered back, "Who are we to dictate how he grieves?"

 **18:54 – The Founder's Ball – Lockwood Manor**

"Rosanna, honey. It's so good to see you." Mrs Lockwood said kindly as she embraced me at the door, before turning to Natalie, "And this is?"

"Natalie Parkes, ma'am." Natalie smiled and extended her hand.

"My best friend." I added, "We were on the National team together."

"Of course! Julia's daughter! Welcome. Enjoy the party girls." She smiled and gestured to come inside the palatial house. She whispered to me quietly, "Tyler is out back, trying to sneak his waitress floozie inside."

"I didn't…um, Mrs Lockwood, I'm so sorry about the other night. I should have apologised sooner. I'm incredibly embarrassed." I whispered back.

"Consider it forgotten honey, we who live our lives on a pedestal need to let loose every once in a while, or may implode at an inopportune time." Mrs Lockwood uttered and kindly fixed my curls before returning to greet the line. I was…honestly dumbfounded, but quietly comforted. I followed Natalie further into the party.

"What did she whisper to you?" Natalie asked.

"She was just thanking me, for the loan of my family's old stuff." I answered.

 **20:01 – The Founder's Ball – Lockwood Manor Veranda**

I stepped outside onto the decking for some fresh air. The back area was littered with fairy lights. A giant fire pit sat in the centre of the yard. Upscale lawn furniture was immaculately decorated with pillows and throws. It looked like I'd walked straight onto a movie set. I was instilled with a feeling of peace that I hadn't felt in a long time. Elena's words were still swimming in my mind, along with Mrs Lockwood's understanding and kindness. We are all hurting in our own way, some more than others. I wanted to cling on to this feeling of peace…or maybe, I was just tired of feeling angry. I leant against the deck railing, beside Tyler, and exhaled, "You live inside the pages of a fricking Pottery Barn catalogue."

Tyler snorted in response. He eventually sighed, glancing to look at me briefly, "More like a museum. You here for round two?"

"No. Your mom has outdone herself tonight, I don't want to ruin her evening." I smiled back at him.

Tyler laughed and asked, like a good host, "Are you enjoying the party?"

"Maybe a little more than you are." I uttered, staring into the vast beautiful grounds.

"I think…no, I definitely was a total dick tonight." He uttered into the crisp night air and rubbed his face in exhaustion.

I turned to him fully and replied, smarmily, "That…sounds like you."

Tyler shot a look my way, and I tried my best to stifle the smile; I couldn't. He shook his head and scoffed, "Hey. Don't forget I saved your drunken ass."

"1 instance doesn't cancel out the other 100." I uttered back.

"100 times? I have never been an ass _to you_ , not once." Tyler noted, taken aback.

"No. Not to me." I laughed, lightly, "But to…Vicki. Maybe, a handful of times. And my brother. And ripping into Matt. You're not particularly receptive to the new guy."

"Because he's tearing Matt to pieces; taking everything he knows. You know, Matt, right? That guy you've had a crush on since you were a little kid?" Tyler uttered seriously, overriding the former tone of the conversation, "Yeah. Believe it or not, most of the time, I do have a reason for being such an ass."

"Why did your mom cover for me?" I asked after a long moment.

"Why did you get blind drunk and fall down a flight of stairs?" Tyler asked sharply.

"I…what?" I uttered, caught off guard at his abrupt tone.

"In love with the sister's boyfriend. Gets white-girl wasted. Attacks guys in their locker room." Tyler scoffed, harshly, "You're not the perfect delicate flower you're painted out to be."

"I'm not in love with Matt." I scorned back.

"That kiss told a different story, or so I'm told." Tyler uttered, matter-of-factly. I scoffed and turned to sharply leave him alone; exactly where he deserved to be. I'd had just about enough of this.

"Ro?" Tyler called after me, "Hey! Rosie?!"

 **20:25 – Lockwood Manor Ballroom**

"I came here with the best of intentions." I grumbled to Natalie, who was staring intensely at the buffet selection before her, "I was dropping the whole damaged goods thing, I was all about the second chances and being the bigger person."

"What did Tyler do now?" Natalie asked, plucking some more pastries on to her plate.

"Excuse me? Why do you assume I'm ranting about Tyler?" I scoffed.

"Second chances. Bigger person. Tyler Lockwood neither deserves nor embodies either of those two things." Natalie noted and led the way back over to her table, "So, what did he do?"

"If I tell you what he did, I have to tell you what I did." I uttered, glancing around to check we were out of earshot.

"Ro. Spill." Natalie uttered and chomped down on her pastry mountain.

"I kissed Matt." I whispered.

Natalie suddenly choked on her pastry and coughed violently.

"SSH!" I scorned and slapped her back.

"Sorry." She spluttered, "I inhaled it. You kissed Matt? When was this? Where was I?"

"He…he kind of kissed me." I admitted, uneasily, "He gave me a ride home after that game, the one with Tanner…"

"Whoa. So romantic. This totally trumps whatever Tyler did or didn't do." Natalie muttered, putting her pastry down and wiping her fingers.

"No. It doesn't. Tensions and emotions and stuff were running high, we found a dead body a few moments earlier, so that's all that was. It was some weird processing trauma thing." I assured her.

"Have you spoken to Matt since?" She asked.

"Well, no."

"Then how do you know it's the emotions and the tensions and the stuff?" She whined.

"Natalie. Focus."

"You just dropped the bomb of all bombs. That's your sister's ex-boyfriend, who still totally pines after her, by the way. And now you two? You've had a crush on him forever, but I thought that's all it was!" Natalie whispered, "This is weird."

"Yes. Weird." I hissed, "Back on topic."

"Did Tyler kiss you?" She asked.

"God. NO." I scorned.

"What then?"

"He…okay, it sounds really petty now." I sighed and avoided Natalie's comical expression, "He said some stuff I didn't like, okay, he hurt my feelings."

"You have to talk to Matt." Natalie suggested, "Find out what that was. What do you want it to be?"

"I don't know." I uttered.

 **22:44 – Lockwood Manor Grounds Dance-floor**

"Rosanna, honey, would you do my son the honour of a dance?" Mrs Lockwood smiled sweetly.

"I'm perfectly capable of asking a girl to dance, mom." Tyler scorned.

"Funny. You've spent the entire night, sulking, on the side-lines." Mrs Lockwood said sharply, "Could have fooled me. Oh Deanna! Darling, you look stunning."

"You don't have to." Tyler uttered to me as his mom sashayed out of view.

"I don't want to." I uttered and turned to leave.

"Rosie. Wait." Tyler huffed and inhaled sharply. I slowly turned to face him. "Okay. Bad night. And…the Vicki jab might have hit a little too close to home."

"Is this your idea of an apology?" I asked.

"I'm not exactly good at them." He uttered.

"Clearly." I noted.

"Dammit, Rosie. I'm trying here." Tyler sighed harshly.

"Okay. Okay, I'm listening." I sighed and folded my arms.

"I was rude to you; what I said back there was completely uncalled for. I'm sorry. And I'm sorry for everything you shouted at me for in that locker room. I'm hurting and it sucks and I didn't mean to hurt you too." He uttered, genuinely.

I glanced up at the guy's expression; it was either sincerity or a really compelling facade. Sometimes you know you're doing the wrong thing, but you've already decided you're going to do it anyway. I forgave him, and trusted his words were true. I allowed my shoulders to fall and nodded, "Okay. Dance with me."

"Uh, I don't know. You'll put me to shame." Tyler sighed and winced.

"Yup." I uttered and grabbed his hand, dragging him out onto the floor.


	7. Now You Can Cry

**10:50 – Bag of Mystic Beans Coffee Shop**

"Have you spoken to Matt yet?" Natalie huffed out rapidly from behind me.

I jumped and just managed to rescue my coffee from spilling. I scorned back, "Jeeeez. Maybe coffee is off your agenda today." I secured a lid on top in preparation for another outburst.

"You haven't spoken to him?" Natalie uttered.

"No. I haven't. He's the one person I want to speak to, and I haven't spoken to him, because I don't want to speak to him. And I'm late for this stupid car wash thing. Please tell me you're coming." I sighed and blew into my coffee.

"Yes. I am. Caroline sent me to hunt you down and drag you there." Natalie admitted, "Please don't tell me that Tyler Lockwood, in all his obnoxious glory, has dragged your attention away from Matt."

"Why would you-"

"You danced with that scumbag all night, laughed at all his undoubtedly mediocre jokes, and you haven't spoken to Matt in over a week." Natalie noted as she linked arms with me abruptly. The lid was a good call.

"I thought the idea of Matt and I was weird." I uttered.

"Ugh, it is. But I'd take Matt over Tyler any day of the week. Matt wouldn't hurt you. Matt wouldn't make you storm into a locker room and start laying into him. Matt wouldn't beat on Jeremy in the first place!" She scoffed.

"Stop. Saying. Matt. It's starting to not sound like a word." I groaned.

 **11:18 - Sexy Suds Car Wash – Mystic Falls High School**

"Are you lost? This is a Junior/Senior event. It's not kid-friendly." Tiki scorned as we rocked up to the car wash.

"Caroline asked us to come." I said plainly and dropped my bag next to the others.

"Layers off, Amish lady!" Caroline sang and went as far as to zip my hoodie down. I winced and jumped back at her abrupt sneak attack. Caroline smiled to Natalie, "I love your bikini, Nat. Where'd you get it?"

"They're Sophomores!" Tiki scorned without taking a break from looking us up and down with utter disdain.

"No. They are nationally-ranked gymnasts with cute butts." Caroline explained in a slow tone to her equally slow friend, before dictating to us, "No friend discounts. No freebies. No pay-me-laters. We're not running a charity here. Get to work, ladies!"

Natalie and I exchanged a look as I shuffled out of my hoodie.

"So, she's against Sophomores washing some janky cars, but she'll happily stick her tongue down their throats." Natalie scoffed.

"I'm…gonna need a little more context with that one." I laughed and tucked my hoodie away into my backpack.

"I'm gonna go stand over there, pick us out some real good sponges." Natalie nodded awkwardly and scurried away.

"Hey." Matt greeted me from behind, his touch against the small of my back sent my heart fluttering in my chest. Oh crap.

"Hi." I rasped and turned slowly to face him. Damnit, Natalie.

"I, uh, haven't seen you in a while." He noted with a smirk. That damn smirk.

"I have been super busy, with stuff and what not." I winced.

"Oh yeah?" He grinned, "I figured you were just avoiding me."

I glanced up once more to catch his grin and scoffed, "Okay…a little."

"I'm sorry, Ro. I don't even know why I did that. It's been so crazy lately, all this weird stuff has been happening, and then Vick, and Elena is so clearly moving on. I wasn't even thinking right. I'm just sorry, you know, can we forget it happened?" Matt asked.

"Okie dokie." I uttered, awkwardly as my soaring heart plummeted to the pit of my stomach.

"I really want us to go back to normal, and not have to hide from each other. I miss you." Matt said, piercing the dagger ever so slowly further into my chest, "How's the car running?"

"It is. Running. Yeah. All is forgotten." I uttered, "Never even happened. Good talk. I better get started. Caroline will-yep-I'm gonna go and get a sponge, there they are. Over there. I'll need one. Car wash. Right."

I stared up at the sky in a desperate attempt to hold the tears back. Ow. Okay. Just walk over to the sponges. There's Natalie. She's standing with the sponges. I'll need to start writing my acceptance speech for the Oscar soon.

"So…you spoke to Matt, then." Natalie uttered, and passed me a sponge.

"Yeah." I huffed out, and felt my lip tremble as I picked at the sponge.

Natalie's eyes widened, she glanced swiftly left to right, and then threw her wet sponge at my face. SPLAT.

"NAT?!" I scorned.

"Sorry. Slippery! Now. Now you can cry." She whispered.

"From the soap in my eyes, you ass!" I scorned and splashed cold water against my face.

 **19:41 – Gilbert House - Rosanna's Room**

I could hear a muffled argument coming from Elena's room but I couldn't make out the other voice, it was much quieter than hers, calmer. I simply shrugged it off. Maybe it was Jeremy? Best for me not to get involved there. I still hadn't exchanged more than a few grunts and eye rolls with the guy, and truth be told, I was content with the new status quo. It was easier.

My attention had reverted back to the Math homework before me, until Elena slammed her window shut so loudly it was actually ridiculous. Okay, that's it. I rose from my desk and stormed through to her room. Her hands were pressed up against the frame, her body rising and falling rapidly.

"What the hell are you doing?" I asked her.

She spun around abruptly with wide eyes, she paused, ran her hands through her hair and sighed, "The wind slammed the window shut. I-I was checking-I thought it broke." She rose from the window seat and sauntered over to her bed, giving me an off look, she grumbled, "I'm going to bed."

"It's not even 8." I uttered, glancing up at her clock.

"Are you the sleep police?!" She scorned, clearly rattled.

I rose my hands in defeat.

"Okay! Jeez." I scoffed and returned to my room.


	8. Secrets Under Wraps

**13:15 – Saturday – Gilbert House – Rosanna's Room**

The doorbell was ringing incessantly. I glanced out my window to see Vicki Donovan's car had skidded up the sidewalk and her front wheels were rammed into one of our mom's flowerbeds.

"Jesus. Jeremy!" I called out and heard him thunder down the stairs.

"I got it! Chill out." Jeremy groaned back at me and called out, "I'm coming!"

"The sun is killing me! My eyes are on fire!" I heard Vicki cry out. I'd sauntered over to my door and peered down the hall to listen to them.

"Where have you been?" Jeremy implored, desperately.

"It's good. Everything's good. Everything's fine!" Vicki rattled and all but ate his face off. I held back the vomit.

"I'm hungry!" Vicki screamed and thundered down to the kitchen. Great. She's high as fuck, in the middle of the day. She could've killed someone, driving like that. The two had another argument, and it sounded as though they were rattling through the kitchen cupboards now. I'd resolved to stay firmly out of Jeremy's life, and proceeded to do so.

 **14:05 – Gilbert House – Rosanna's Room**

There was a new commotion downstairs, even louder than before. I could hear Matt's voice now. Jeremy must have called for back-up. I came out of my room and leant against the bannister, hearing snippets of the discussion.

"What's going on?" Elena implored Matt.

"She's really messed up!" Matt told her the understatement of the year.

"Elena, back up. Vicki, look at me. Focus. You're gonna be fine. Guys. Take her up to bed, shut the blinds, everything's gonna be okay." Stefan ordered. I slipped back into my room, feigning ignorance, as they came up the stairs. Apparently, Vicki was on something particularly potent and she was not handling it well.

 **14:50 – Gilbert House – Shared Bathroom**

"Ro." Vicki rasped with great difficulty, "What is that…I smell it. I can smell it from here."

I spun back to face her; she was propped up against the door frame of the bathroom I shared with Jeremy, she was struggling to stand on her own damn feet. I shook my head and returned to washing my hands, uttering, "Paper cut. It's fine. It's tiny. Go back to bed, Vicki. Ride out your shit trip." I had no doubt it would be more than fine, and watched as the cut disappeared before me, as though the water itself were washing it away.

Vicki's breathing turned into furious intakes of breath, scattered with groans. I turned with the intent to berate her again, but she was up against me now, her shoulders rising and falling rapidly; she couldn't look at me, she twanged and thrashed her head to the side. I was equally captivated and confused by her freakish display; she was the perfect anti-drug poster child right now, she was out of her mind. As I opened my mouth to bark at her, she pushed us both back straight into the bathroom cabinets, her hand slamming my head into the mirror. Glass shattered everywhere.

"VICKI!" I heard Stefan roar from downstairs and thunder up. My vision clouded over and blood trickled down my temple. I desperately flailed to smack her away from me. As I pushed out, she chomped down onto my arm. I screamed out in agony and fear. It wasn't just a bite. She tore into my arm. She was flung off me, violently, thrown into the wall. She staggered to her feet as I fell to the floor, clutching the mangled mess she'd made of my arm. I blinked, and she was gone; writing the speed of her disappearance off as my concussion's doing. Stefan slammed to his knees, grasping for a towel to press against my arm. Elena arrived soon after and screamed out at the sight. She fought to push Stefan far away from me, as though he were the one who'd ripped into me.

"VICK! VICKI!" Matt barked outside. She must have legged it.

"What the hell is she on?!" I cried into Elena, in between sobs. I glanced down at my arm and almost fainted at the sight.

 **16:30 – Mystic Falls Emergency Room**

I was admitted to the hospital for the night. A surgeon had to stitch up my arm; I'd be out of action for 6 weeks, or risk bursting the stitches. Benched. For 6 weeks. I wondered how that would go down with Carly. Blood tests were taken to ensure I hadn't caught anything nasty from…the feral dog that had bit me. The cut on my head was from the fall…I was so startled by the feral dog. Jeremy had begged me to stick to the story, and I did, even though he didn't really deserve the pass, I didn't want him to get dragged down with her.

"Okay. This dog that suddenly appeared out of nowhere and bit you. What kind of dog was it, Rosanna?" Sheriff Forbes asked, her notepad and pen primed to take down my lies.

"I...I don't know." I uttered.

"You don't know? Your arm is pretty messed up, I'd expect you to have some vague idea of how that came about: the colour? the size? Did it have a collar? Had you seen it around the neighbourhood before?" Sheriff Forbes did not relent.

"I-I can't remember if it had a collar. It...it happened so fast."

"She hit her head. Pretty hard." Jeremy uttered, from his position lent against the doorway, "Cut her some slack."

"Perhaps, her statement would be more illuminating after some rest." Stefan suggested.

 **23:25 – Mystic Falls Memorial Hospital - Room 24 C**

I awoke with a start; the alien clinical smell invading my nostrils. I must have finally dozed off. It took a short while to adjust to my surroundings; I was in a hospital bed with my arm wrapped up in bandages, my head stinging. It all returned to me. Vicki. I rolled to the side to see my sister curled up in a chair beside me. She opened her eyes wearily, awoken by my stirring; she always was a light sleeper.

"Are you okay?" I asked her.

"I'm supposed to ask you that." She smiled lightly.

"Your eyes are red." I whispered.

"I broke up with Stefan tonight." She uttered, shakily.

"Why?"

She began to cry, and I made room for her to crawl into bed with me. She whispered, "He wasn't honest with me. And when he was, I-I didn't like it."

I'd later learn that she broke up with Stefan because of _this_ , what had happened to me. Elena didn't want Stefan's world to reach me or Jeremy, but little did she know, it already had, irreparably, and the blame was unjustly placed on his shoulders. But it was never in his hands; we were always a part of this world, all of us, it was just a matter of time, of playing out the final acts of our ignorance. Stefan had interfered with my lab results; he told Elena it was a parting gesture, to solidify our tale and erase any trace of what had truly happened that day. But...Stefan's intent was not only to keep his own secret from surfacing. Although he did not entirely understand the nature of mine, he decided it too should remain undiscovered.


	9. Loud And Clear

**The Next Day – 09:50 – Mystic Falls Memorial Hospital**

"Okay, Ms Sommers, we just need you to fill out the discharge paperwork and then you two can be on your way." The nurse smiled and beckoned Aunt Jenna to follow her back out to the reception area.

"Right. Okay. Just a second." Jenna nodded and turned back to me, "Do you need me to do anything else? Are you sure you're okay? No crazy fevers, no rabid foaming at the mouth?"

"I'm fine. Honest." I scoffed.

"It's just…I thought this could be a few days, it's been barely one-"

"Dr Fell wouldn't send me home if I wasn't okay." I assured her and folded my pyjamas up neatly.

"Dr Fell is an ancient old quack, that argument bares no weight whatsoever."

"You're only saying that because he's Logan's-"

"Ha-ha, no! I'm saying that because-no, not the time! Listen. Don't worry about the time off, or the money, or anything okay? We're insured up to our eyeballs, you could rent out a ward in here if you wanted to." Jenna scoffed and gestured wildly.

"Ms Sommers?" The nurse called after her.

"Go. I'm fine." I uttered and sighed harshly at Jenna remaining rooted to the spot, "This isn't one of those storing up all my feelings into a mason jar, ready to explode at any moment, moments. I feel okay. My tests say I'm okay. So, I'm no doctor, but I'm guessing I'm okay."

"Okay. I might be a while. Hang tight." Jenna uttered and finally followed the nurse out towards the reception. I immediately tucked my pyjamas into my bag and crept towards the door quietly. I watched Aunt Jenna settle in the waiting room, and widen her eyes as she flicked through a bunch of papers. I saw her mouth 'holy shit', and I stifled a laugh as I slipped out of the room, and along the hallway. Casually, I glanced at the floor-map pinned at the stairwell which indicated that I needed to go up two more floors: Patient Records.

By some small miracle, the room was unoccupied, for now. I glanced around at the shelves upon shelves of paper wallets, ranging from busting open to paper thin. Okay, D…E…F…Ga…Ge…Gilberts! But…it wasn't here. My parents weren't here. Elena, Jeremy…some fella named Malcolm. No Rosanna. No Grayson. No Miranda.

"What are you doing?" A stern voice asked me, and understandably so.

"I…am-" I hummed.

"Are you lost?" The man furrowed his brow and rattled his fingertips against the sign that clearly stated: 'Staff Only', "Patients aren't allowed in here, there's untold amounts of private, sensitive information in theses files. You wouldn't want someone snooping into yours now, would you?"

"Oh, well, that's the thing! I want to snoop into mine. I'm just looking for my own files and such! Nothing untoward, just curiosity getting the better of the cat. Ha-ha." I babbled.

The man sighed harshly, and shooed me out, slapping a form into my hands, "You're allowed to view your own medical file, but you have to request it through the proper channel and pay the nominal fee. Good day."

He slammed the door in my face and I sighed at the length of the form stuffed into my hands.

 **11:20 – Gilbert House – Rosanna's Room**

"Matt's here. Do you want me to send him away?" Jenna uttered as she tapped on my door quietly, poking her head in.

I sighed and shook my head. I sat up in my bed as she disappeared to send him up. I glanced down at my pyjamas, great. Jenna had insisted I take today off despite being discharged with a clean bill of health and feeling completely fine.

"Hey, Ro." He rasped and entered my bedroom, sheepishly, "How're you feeling?"

"Dandy. But Jenna's insisted on treating me like an invalid for the next 24 hours, minimum." I uttered back.

"I'm really grateful that you're going along with this. I'm really sorry. I've never seen her this…out of her mind." Matt rasped and perched himself on the end of my bed, like it was nothing. It was nothing.

"It's fine." I whispered.

"No, Ro. It's not." Matt drawled and ran his hands through his hair, "And now she's bailed as well. I have no idea where she is! God, I mean, she really hurt you!"

"Matt." I uttered and took his hand, "They're going to find her, okay? And she'll get help. None of this is your fault."

"You're too good, little one. I mean, you're the one that's busted up and you're still looking out for everyone else. You're unreal, you know that?" Matt sighed and squeezed my hand back, "Hey, listen, sorry for the flying stop but I've gotta get back to the search party, I couldn't not stop by, see how you were."

I nodded and led him over to the door.

He paused and asked me, "Are you going to the Halloween dance?"

"As hard as Caroline is to say no to...I think I've got a pretty good excuse this time. And I doubt that would fly with Jenna anyhow." I scoffed.

Matt paused for a moment, and thought, he bit his lip before nodding, "Right. See you later."

My mind was sent racing as I watched him saunter back down the stairs. What was he going to say? Why did he pause? No. Shut up, brain.

I waited until I heard Matt say goodbye to Jenna before I moved over to the mirror and peeled away the bandage. I recoiled in fear and confusion…I was completely healed. It had happened again. No stitches. No scar. Nothing.

I made a determined note to speak to Stefan. No more chickening out. If you want to know the truth, you have to start asking the hard questions. I swear this had happened to him, that night at the football game. But how was I supposed to even bring this up?

 _"Hey, Stefan, sorry to hear about you and Elena but…does your body do this weird thing where your injuries heal super-fast, like…impossibly lightning fast?"_

 _"Sure Rosanna, and these nice men with the butterfly net will tell you all you need to know."_

I sat down at my computer with the intent to search it, but I couldn't phrase it right…fast healing…impossible healing time… _was_ cut, now not…nothing. I googled the side effects of the medication I was on after the accident. The most intelligible post was claiming that delusions and hallucinations can occur after acute trauma of both the physical (such as a junkie smacking one's head into a mirror) and emotional nature (such as one's parents drowning in a lake, in addition to survivor's guilt). I fell deeper into the internet hole, researching delusions or accelerated side effects from protein shakes. I hadn't done anything else since…wait…since when? I considered my past. I was a very careful, reserved kid. I remembered my junior gymnastics coach marvelling after I landed funny from a tumble, and I just needed to walk it off…I've never broken a bone, but plenty of people have never broken a bone, it's not like some rite of passage, it's not weird to have never broken a bone.

I've…I can't remember the last time I was sick…I have been sick though…have I?

I slammed the laptop shut. Enough. It's the pain meds…I'll await my medical records, and I won't think about it until then.

 **22:35 – Gilbert House – Rosanna's Room**

 _PLINK._

 _PLINK._

What the hell?

I rubbed my eyes and glanced over at my phone, buzzing away on my nightstand: Tyler.

"What the hell?" I grumbled.

"Ah, good evening to you too." Tyler greeted.

"What do you want, Tyler?"

"Were you actually asleep?" Tyler laughed, "Come on, Ro. It's Friday night!"

"Yeah. Yeah, it's been a day. Or a year."

"Why weren't you at the dance?" He asked.

"I'm…under house arrest. Jenna has ceased any and all fun. Effective immediately." I grumbled back and ran a hand through my hair, glancing over at the clock.

"Huh. Wasn't aware you knew how to have fun."

"Charming. Can I go now?" I scowled.

"What's the crime?"

"What?"

"House arrest for what?"

"Oh. I…robbed a gas station. Anything else?"

"That…sounds like you." Tyler scoffed, "Rumour has it you got nipped by a chihuahua and you're totally milking it for the pain meds."

A gnarly scoff got caught in my throat as I rose to my feet, "Are you-are you serious?!"

"Hey, blame the grapevine, not me." Tyler laughed, "And while you're at it, look out your window, Juliet."

 _PLINK._ My mind hadn't quite connected the dots yet, but hey, cut me some slack, there was no logical reason for him to be standing down there, and I was pretty doped up at the time.

"Tyler. Why are you outside my window? Dressed as…what the hell are you?" I laughed at the sight.

"It's your turn to take care of me." He declared, "And I'm a Spartan, obviously."

"You don't sound wasted. You're not lying in a heap at the bottom of the stairs. You're fine."

"Wouldn't put too much stock in the latter." He uttered under his breath, but I just managed to catch it. He turned the charm back on and implored, "Come on, Ro, it's cold."

 **22:46 – Gilbert House – Rosanna's Room**

Tyler was dressed as a gladiator, an aptly chosen costume to show off his perfect body. This was a really weird night. The instant I realised I was staring I shot my glare to the side, and my attention to the books on my bed. Tyler tossed them onto the desk to make room.

"You cuddle up with these? Awful pointy." Tyler asked, plonking himself down on my bed. I merely rolled my eyes in response. He turned the conversation to my comedically bulky bandaged arm, "That bandage doesn't scream chihuahua to me. You gonna tell me what really happened?"

"A big dog got the jump on me. It was super embarrassing, okay? There. The end." I uttered as I curled up next to him, cross-legged.

Tyler paused, and shook his head, "Probably pretty terrifying too, to have something just come at you like that."

"Yeah. It was." I uttered, as I picked a piece of fluff off of my duvet absentmindedly. My statement to Sheriff Forbes proved that my ability to lie spontaneously was borderline abysmal, I didn't want to invite any more questions.

"Matt said he got a call from Vicki, she said she was okay, whatever that means." Tyler uttered.

I froze a little at hearing her name, and awkwardly cleared my throat, "So, uh, so she's back?"

"I don't know, we're still stuck on the one sentence conversations." Tyler sighed, "I thought I saw her back at the dance, though. I dunno, looked like her anyway."

"So, she must be…" I uttered, my mind racing over what had happened. She must've come back down if she's off to the school dance. I struggled to stifle the bitter feeling sitting in the pit of my stomach. She causes all of this damage and she just parties the night away, like nothing even happened? Although I wasn't quite finished despising Vicki, I remembered who was before me and cut myself off by simply declaring, "I'm glad she's okay…you know, for Matt."

"Yeah. He doesn't deserve this crap." Tyler uttered.

"Right. No. He doesn't. Tyler, why are you here?" I asked plainly.

Tyler's brow peaked, and he paused before shrugging, "Halloween Dance wasn't exactly popping."

"Why… _here_?" I asked.

Tyler locked eyes with mine and he uttered, "I guess I was worried about you. For someone so graceful you're incredibly lacking in grace."

"Yeah, you've said that before." I uttered snottily.

"What's with the 'tude?"

I sat back to take him in fully as I scorned, "I'm not your problem, and I'm not your charity case. You don't need to keep checking I'm still breathing."

"I never said you were. I just wanted to make sure you didn't really do a number on yourself this time." Tyler rasped.

"Well, I'm okay." I shrugged.

" _Are_ you?" Tyler asked, abruptly.

"Are _you_?" I shot back.

"You can't just shoot it back. Answer me." Tyler asked, his gestures getting more heated as he shot up from the bed, "Are you okay? Because you're kind of being an asshole right now. And not in your usual give-as-good-as-I-get crap, just plain old being an asshole. And it doesn't suit you!"

"That is so rich, coming from King Asshole!" I scorned and shot to my feet.

"King Asshole?! Are you for real?"

"I pale in comparison to all the shit you've pulled, so what, I hurt your feelings? I called you out on your crap?! And that makes ME the asshole?"

"Whatever. Stop deflecting everything back on to me. This was about you! And where the Old Ro went?" Tyler scorned.

"I don't know who that is anymore!" I exploded abruptly and jerked as if I wanted to physically catch the words as they fell out of my mouth. Why? How do I stuff them back in? The words hung in the air.

"What do you mean?" Tyler asked, tentatively.

Oh well, they're out there now, might as well see where this goes. I paced the room as I rambled, "I don't know what I mean. I don't know! I wanted to quit, I wanted to start fresh this year, I wanted to do whatever the hell I wanted for the first time in all my humble ass days, I wanted _that_ to be the key to finally chipping away at this big block of sadness that is just constantly slamming down on my chest, and it's like I can't breathe, and don't get me wrong, I love my parents, I-I can't express what they've done for us, and I take none of it back, because I was happy, I really think I was happy. But as they were lowered into the ground I reconciled everything in my head that this was a new chapter, this was moving on, this was how I was going to be able to get out of bed in the morning, and you can't move on if you're stuck and, I am stuck."

"Why don't you? Quit." Tyler uttered, mesmerised by the stream of consciousness erupting from me, chancing that offering up a simple suggestion was enough to plug a hole in it. No.

"Carly won't let me!" I laughed, manically, "That…despicably selfish, pathetic bitch won't let me! She has this brilliant HD quality clip of my dumb ass brother keying Mr Tanner's car, keying our recently deceased Football Coach's car. Ha-ha! I mean that's pretty good right? It was pretty bad before, the ever-mounting case to send Jeremy to Juvie, but NOW, now it's undeniable, he's off, BYE JEREMY! And I really can't lose anyone else. He's the most hurtful, brattish, sorry excuse for a brother around, but he's my brother, and I don't want him to go-I don't want-" I was silenced by Tyler pulling me into a strong embrace. I didn't have the strength to hold it together anymore, so a couple months' worth of pent up anger, and crippling sadness erupted into his arms. He didn't flinch, and he didn't waver; he was just there, holding me upright, assuring me that eventually everything was going to be okay.

He wiped away the final tear on my cheek as my breathing steadied. His touch lingered for a beat too long. And another. His hand traced down and found my chin, guiding my lips towards his. This was different from Matt. Kissing Matt was overwhelmed by my thoughts going off like fire-crackers in the background. The thought of kissing Matt, overwhelmed the kissing of Matt. And this was certainly different from the only other guys I'd ever kissed: Lonnie James – that was sloppy and dictated by a glass bottle spinning between us, so particularly devoid of magic. And Daniel Hayes – Adam's older brother, but in all fairness, that was also just a fumbling mess in a movie theatre, and I didn't really want to kiss him, but everyone kind of egged us into it, and I really wanted to get my first kiss out of the way…romantic, I know.

This kiss…I didn't want to kiss him until I kissed him. And suddenly, that's all I ever wanted to do. Okay, that makes little sense, I know. But Tyler…was not what I needed, or wanted, but, his lips were overriding every other thought. They were all I could think about, everything else faded away and I fell into him, and I liked it. And I never wanted him to stop.

"No." Tyler uttered. He pulled away just as things got particularly heated, "Wait. Ro. I don't want this."

"You…wow. Ouch." I uttered, and brushed my hair back, feeling a gorgeous mixture of flushed, and rejected.

"No, I don't want this for you!" Tyler implored, and froze at the sound of the front door slamming open and what sounded like Jeremy storming up the stairs. I froze too, and pulled my cardigan around me tighter, instinctively. Tyler shook his head sharply and whispered, "You don't deserve me."

"Excuse me?! I-I don't deserve you? What the hell does that mean?" I hissed back.

"God, no!" Tyler scorned, "You're sad and you're hearing this in the worst possible way. I'm trying to be the better man here. You're the good thing in this!"

We heard Stefan calling out for Jeremy and trudging up the stairs after him. What the hell had happened with them? I couldn't hear Elena's voice. Weird.

"You should go. Now! Before they see you." I whispered back harshly and dragged him over to the window.

"No, not until you hear this right." Tyler uttered, grasping at my arm

"No. I got it! Loud and clear." I hissed back and shuffled out of his grasp, "Please. Tyler. Just GO."

As the commotion intensified outside my door, Tyler admitted defeat and snuck out of my bedroom window, lowering himself down onto the porch roof, and finally down into the night.

Well, that was nothing short of mortifying, I thought to myself, as I climbed back into my bed and pretended to be out for the count. I listened to Stefan admitting defeat with Jeremy, and returning downstairs. I heard Elena patter up the stairs a short while later and hold onto Jeremy as he cried.

"What about her?" I heard Damon ask Elena on the landing.

"No, she's asleep, it's fine." Elena whispered back.

"Asleep? Her heartbeat's deafening." Damon hissed.

"She's on a lot of meds from the bite. She never came out." Stefan offered.

"If she mentions something then fine, but I don't want to do this again unless it's absolutely necessary." Elena hissed and led the brothers back downstairs.


	10. Your Super Dumb Choice

**09:03 – Mystic Falls Police Station**

"Elena?" I whispered to my sister, and beckoned her over to the water cooler, out of earshot of Jenna and Jeremy, "Jeremy doesn't remember what happened to me."

Elena's pupils dilated, and her body jerked. She shot her eyes sharply away from mine, landing upon our brother; I could almost hear the cogs turning. Jeremy was sitting patiently next to our aunt; he was still. Elena hesitantly turned back to me, and huffed out, "What?"

"Jeremy doesn't remember Vicki chowing down on my arm." I whispered back, pointing to my bandaged arm. Elena flinched. She gently pushed my arm down and led me around the corner.

"He's…messing with you. He's sticking to the party line. Practising." Elena uttered, "Or something? I mean, you're not going to tell Sheriff Forbes that, are you? That'll just get everyone in to trouble. You'll get into trouble for lying."

"What if it's important? It might help the police to know that the missing girl is also known to dabble in extra-psycho drugs, she could hurt someone else, Elena."

"She's not missing. She was here, and she was fine, and she told Jeremy that she was leaving town, not to look for her, she's gone. She's not-"

"So, what? She's not our problem anymore? Now that she's bailed? What if Jeremy took what she was on, and it's causing some memory loss thing? What if he flips out?"

"You're being ridiculous." Elena whispered harshly, "Vicki has left, of her own accord. Jeremy is fine. He's just…he needs a minute to get over her. If you tell them what actually happened that night, you're just getting our brother into trouble, and us, and it's about time Jeremy started fresh. So, let's just put this to bed, okay?"

I nodded, and she walked away from me, settling down beside Matt. I was unsettled by her sketchy, removed tone, and couldn't shake the conversation I'd overheard that night; I couldn't piece it together, it was all just…weird. Sheriff Forbes asked us all to come in individually, and grilled us about our last interactions with Vicki. I told the Sheriff that all I knew was that Matt had been constantly worried these past few weeks, Vicki had dipped in and out of contact with him, and her behaviour didn't seem to be out of character. I believed that she had bailed, of her own accord. There was no foul play.

 **11:14 – Gilbert House – Living Room**

"You're wallowing." Jenna uttered as she slumped down next to me on the couch, offering over her massive bowl of chips.

"Am not." I uttered back and took a handful.

"Yes, you are. Why? Why are you wallowing?" Jenna asked, stuffing too many into her mouth at once.

"I'm not. You are." I scorned, half-heartedly. I'm wallowing because I got rejected and I can never show my face in the light of day ever again. I kept repeating every stupid thought I'd spilled that night, over and over again. And to Tyler?! Okay, I'd known the guy since I was – this tall – and I guess he was hot in his own special obnoxious way, but he was not confidante material! Stupid, Ro. Stupid, stupid, stupid-

"My wallow is legitimate." Jenna contested, "I was dumped."

"Yeah well, Logan's a jerk." I uttered, "Your wallow was inevitable."

"Hey!" Jenna scoffed, and sat up to make her point, "You didn't just get a brush off email saying, 'I'm leaving town see you'. Be nice. I'm feeling delicate."

"Do you think I'm an asshole?" I asked abruptly.

Jenna almost spat out her chips as she chuckled and waffled, "What?"

"Wanna keep it down over there?" Jeremy sighed from behind us.

Aunt Jenna and I exchanged a puzzled glance before pushing ourselves up and turning to face him. Jeremy was sat at the breakfast bar doing…well it looked like he was doing…

"Why?" I asked cautiously.

"What are you doing?" Jenna asked.

"Homework." Jeremy stated matter-of-factly.

"Since when do you do homework?" I asked tentatively.

"I gotta finish this, I'm way behind and I have a quiz tomorrow, so…" Jeremy sighed.

"What do you think?" Jenna asked me, "Alien?"

"Some sort of replicant." I replied seriously; it was the only logical answer here.

"He can hear you." Jeremy scorned.

"That's…too big to deal with right now, tell me your thing." Jenna uttered to me.

"I have no thing." I shrugged.

"You have a thing."

"Okay, do you have all day, because I have all day and I have no thing-" I argued back.

"But you never sit down. You're always buzzing around." Jenna contemplated, "Why am I being quizzed on how assholey you are?"

"My…arm is sore." I uttered pathetically and rose up, stating I was away to take a leaf out of Jeremy's book and start my own homework. In truth, my arm hadn't stung for a while, but to keep up the charade, I needed to keep it bandaged for a while. I spent the rest of the afternoon watching Halloween YouTube videos on fake scars, and practicing on my other arm.

 **08:50 – Mystic Falls High School**

"Rose-" I heard Tyler utter. My eyes shot up to clock him, and then immediately skidded back to the ground; my heart pounded in my ears. Luckily, my Math class was in sight. I feigned ignorance and ducked inside, fiercely staring down at my desk.

"How was your weekend?" Adam asked, parking himself down at the desk in front of me.

"Fine. Quiet." I uttered and rummaged around in my backpack for my textbook.

"Did you…get a chance to-" Adam uttered.

I plucked my answers out of my notebook and passed them over to Adam without a word, who grinned and started furiously scribbling.

"Tyler wants to talk to you, he asked me to tell you. Ro? He's loitering awkwardly at the door, trying to make eye contact with you. What did you do to that boy?" Natalie scoffed and sat down behind me.

"Hey, babe." Adam grinned at Natalie as the bell finally went. Okay, Tyler should have sauntered away by now, but I'm still not risking looking at the door.

"Suck a dick, Adam." Natalie scorned and rose from her seat to snatch my answers back from him, "Don't help him. He doesn't deserve it. He totally dropped me in it! You're so lucky you weren't at Caroline's party. I am in a world of shit with my dad."

"Are you for real?!" Adam groaned, "What was I supposed to do?"

"Um, not sell me out?" Natalie scoffed.

"So, lie to a police officer, as you're obviously chucking your guts out in a bush." Adam rolled his eyes.

"Say I ate a bad quesadilla!"

"You reeked of tequila."

"Whatever. Adam. Turn around. No one's talking to you." Natalie scorned, "Rosie, did you get a look at the new history teacher? He is smoking hot."

"Guys-" I uttered to deaf ears.

"Can you turn around please?" Natalie scorned at Adam, "We are trying to have a conversation and it does not concern you."

"You're acting like a toddler. It's got nothing to do with Ro. She's my friend too." Adam scoffed.

"Are you serious? You are equating copying math homework with 15 years of friendship? You are so delusional! This is just like you-changing the topic from what really matters-trying to get away-"

I tuned out at this point. Tyler was clearly desperate to talk to me. I, on the other hand, had nothing to say.

 **16:05 – Mystic Falls High School – Gymnastics Practice**

"Hey…Rosanna." Carly uttered from behind me.

I turned to face her, silently.

"I uh…I wanted to apologise." She said.

"For?" I uttered.

"For…the video." Carly uttered, and flicked her phone out, showcasing her collection of selfies to prove it was gone, "I deleted it. There's nothing keeping you on this team except for, well, you."

I stared back at her in disbelief. She tucked her phone away and nodded, before turning to leave.

"Hey?" I said, confused as ever, "I don't get it."

"I know you won't believe me, given my methods, but I really did think it was a massive waste of talent to jump ship now; just when we're really making waves. Yes, there are perks for me, and you are totally carrying this team, but you are so good. I hate how good you are, I could practice every day, hours on end, but you're just a natural and it would have been a real shame if you threw in the towel."

"Why are you doing this?"

"I get that you're sad, and you have every right to be, but this is who you are; you're the best at what you do." Carly declared, "And if you want to leave that all behind, okay, it's completely your choice...your super dumb choice."

 **19:03 – Gilbert House – Kitchen**

"This arrived for you this morning." Jeremy said, handing over a big brown envelope.

"Oh, thank you." I uttered, reaching over to accept it.

"I left it on the counter, but-" Jeremy shrugged.

"Yeah, I must've missed it."

"It's from the hospital, you okay? Your arm okay?" Jeremy asked, "Sorry, I've felt totally out of it these past few days."

I glanced up at his sincere look. It wasn't familiar, but it was genuine. I cleared my throat and smiled, "Yeah, it's fine. It'll just be the bill, I bet."

I took the envelope and headed upstairs to my room, closing the door behind me. I ripped open the envelope and tossed its contents out on to my bed. There wasn't much inside.

Rosanna Jane Gilbert: admitted for a dog bite, stitches, shots administered…signed off by Dr Edward Fell. The date of discharge was left blank? Or redacted? What? I rifled back through the pages: Flu – course of antibiotics – signed off by Dr Grayson Gilbert…I couldn't remember this. A broken arm – treated by Dr Grayson Gilbert…what? I've never broken a bone. All of these instances were signed off by my father, at his practice; never at the hospital, with the exception of this 'dog bite' validated by Dr Fell. I couldn't remember any of these…

There were no answers for me inside here, just more questions. I was just more confused than ever.


	11. Pot Meet Kettle

**08:01 – Gilbert House – Rosanna's room**

I was in the middle of curling my hair when Elena chapped on my door. I called her in.

"Since when do you knock?" I asked.

"Funny." Elena scoffed and closed the door behind her, "Do you have any idea what's going on next door?"

I paused for a moment and glanced over at the bathroom door connecting my room to Jeremy's. I asked, "Do I want to know?"

"Yes! This is a good thing." Elena grinned and perched herself at the end of my bed, "Jeremy is sketching. He's got that massive charcoal palette thing out, and he's…ya know, sketching."

I stopped curling my hair for a moment, and smiled, "You serious? That's amazing!"

"Yeah, it's a good sign, right?" Elena sighed happily and overtook doing my hair, "It's like he's taking his whole 'new leaf' thing seriously. Mr Saltzman gave him an amazing second chance, Jenna said he was sitting on a 0% for the semester, but he's taking his extra credit seriously. And now he's drawing again."

"Yeah. It's really good."

"Right? We all should stick in with what we know, what we're good at, you know, our hobbies and stuff. It helps get everything back on track, back to…somewhat normal." Elena babbled as she played with my hair. I sat back a little and turned to her. Okay, this was a set up.

"Did Jenna bribe you to come in here?" I asked monotonously.

"No. She doesn't know. But how many alarm bells will go off when she finds out what you've done?" Elena implored. I do think she was being genuinely concerned here, but as per usual, she'd butted in before getting the full story.

"Elena-"

"Is this because of me? Because I quit cheerleading? I set up this quitter example, like that's the way we do things?"

"Not everything is about you Elena." I sighed and rose up, "And how did you even find out about this?"

"Coach Reed asked if there was something in the water at our house. Why didn't you tell me?" Elena asked.

"When was I supposed to tell you, Elena? You're never here." I uttered and pulled my hoodie on.

"I'm here now, okay? I'm sorry. I'm listening, and I am here now." Elena declared, grabbing my hand to stop me from storming out, "Why did you quit everything?"

"Carly had a video of Jeremy keying Mr Tanner's car. She bribed me into staying. That's the only reason I didn't quit the second the term started. I can think and act independently of you, Elena, I'm not copying you." I uttered, "And don't look like that, she deleted the video, I don't know why, and she granted my freewill back. So, I quit cheerleading. I'm still on the dance team, and the gymnastics team. I still have an overly busy schedule, I've just chopped one thing off, for the time being, that I wasn't getting anything out of."

"Okay, so it's just because you weren't into cheerleading anymore."

"That's it. Can I go now? Or do you have something else to interrogate me with?"

Elena bit her cheek and shook her head.

"Great." I uttered and brushed past her.

 **10:45 – Mystic Falls High School – Exterior**

Natalie and I were walking across to the science building, she was ranting about Adam once again, and I was truthfully only semi-listening.

"Hey, remember when you fell off the monkey bars and broke your arm?" I asked.

"Remember it?" Natalie scoffed, "How could I not? It's burned into my brain, that shit was painful, and so embarrassing, so thank you for the replay."

"That's not something you forget easily, huh?" I uttered.

"No? Not really. What made you think of that?" She asked. I think I was going to tell her in that moment. Maybe. I was tired of being confused, and rattling through everything that happened on my own, I needed a fresh perspective. She was my best friend. She knew me. I remembered her broken bones, she'd at least be able to diagnose me with memory loss by recounting mine. However, she abruptly grabbed my shoulders and turned me away.

"Wh-what are you doing?" I asked.

"You know how you're always calling Jeremy a stubborn ass and in reality, you totally give him a run for his money?" Natalie grinned, her hands stuck to my shoulders.

"What?" I scoffed, "That's so rich coming from-"

"Yeah, yeah. Pot. Kettle." Natalie said, flapping her hand about to cut me off, "Okay, but you just need to stand here for like 3 more seconds and, forgive me eventually, okay? Bye!"

"What?!" I scorned and felt someone brush against my arm, coaxing me to face them. My shoulders fell sharply at the sight of him. Crap.

"I'm sorry. Desperate times." Tyler uttered and eventually released his hold on my arm, "You can't avoid me forever."

"I don't know. I've been doing a really good job so far." I sighed and folded my arms.

"Rosie, about that night-" Tyler uttered.

"Tyler. I don't want to talk about that night. Hence the whole avoiding thing."

"Hear me out, hear where I'm coming from, and then you can jump straight back into hating me." Tyler uttered and didn't pause for my hesitation, "I wanted to jump your bones. So bad." I scoffed but Tyler carried on, even more impassioned, he stepped up close to me, catching my breath as he whispered, "I haven't stopped thinking about that kiss. But as hard as it was to back off, I'm never gonna apologise for it. You deserve better than that, a better guy. You're not that kind of girl."

"You have no idea what kind of girl I am." I scorned up at his emblazoned eyes.

"Yes. I do, Rosie, I've known you as long as I remember knowing anyone. And your first time won't be with some guy taking advantage."

My eyes shot around, and I scorned back at him; my words caught in my throat.

"I'm sorry that I hurt you, or made you feel like I didn't want you." Tyler uttered. He paused for a moment, and I had to chew my cheek to prevent myself from saying anything. His eyes travelled down to my lips as I relaxed my composure. I caught them.

"See you around." He rasped as he cleared his throat and left.


	12. It's Kind Of In The Job Description

**09:01 – Mystic Falls High School - Gymnasium**

I stepped out of the shower, after an early morning dance practice, to a barrage of missed calls and messages. What the hell...

"Hello?" I answered the current incoming call.

"Rosanna Gilbert?" The voice huffed out on the other end, "This is Sheriff Forbes, are you alright?"

"Um…yes? And how're you…doing?" I asked, hesitantly.

"Rosanna. We found your car wrecked on the side of Mason Road! Do you care to explain that please? Do you know that it's a _crime_ in Virginia to leave the scene of an accident without alerting the authorities? There was blood splattered across the dash?! I've had numerous officers out looking for you! At the hospital, in the surrounding woodland." Sheriff Forbes barked down the line, her concern was now overridden with anger.

My heart froze in place. Blood across the dash. Crashed car. Miles out of town. What the hell have you done, Elena? Oh my god, was she okay?

"I-I'm sorry." I uttered, desperately trying to piece it all together.

"Rosanna! Where are you?!" Sheriff Forbes barked. I jumped a little at her rough tone.

"I-I will come down to the station. I'm sorry for all the trouble I caused." I uttered and hung up the phone. Shit. Shit. Shit! I furiously called Elena's phone over and over as I quickly got dressed and roughly towel-dried my hair; it just rung out.

I erupted from the gym and smacked straight into someone rather solid.

"OW. Jesus Christ!" I groaned and rubbed my cheek.

"Not quite. Are you okay?" Stefan rasped.

My eyes rose to catch their steely counterpart. I scorned, "Where's Elena?!"

"She's...fine." Stefan uttered back, somewhat sheepishly.

"Answer the question! Stefan, she wrecked my car!" I barked back, with wide eyes, flailing my phone around, "That was the Sheriff, asking what the hell happened. Where is she?!"

"She…she's-" He rasped, but I cut him off.

"Wow. The wheels are turning pretty slowly on that one. How about we go for the truth?!" I asked bluntly.

"She's in Georgia. With Damon." Stefan uttered what appeared to be restrained honesty.

"Georgia?! Damon?!" I hissed, with a raised eyebrow.

"I know. She…we had a disagreement, and she needed a little space to cool off, so she's with Damon, visiting a friend." Stefan rasped, with a heavy heart.

So, she needs a little time out? She wrecks my car and she needs a little time out?! That is what you're going with here!

I sighed heavily and asked, "And what happened with the car? Is she alright?"

Stefan nodded, "Yes. It was just an animal in the road. She'll be back soon, I expect."

"What the hell am I gonna say?" I whispered and jumped as my phone rang. Jenna was calling. I glanced up at Stefan and exhaled sharply, before turning back to my phone and hitting accept.

"Hey, Jenna." I uttered, sheepishly. Jenna exploded on the other line. Stefan cast a heavy look of pity back at me; he knew what I was about to do. I left him there, and began trudging my way off school grounds, and headed towards home.

"I'll be home in like, 10 minutes, Aunt Jenna." I uttered over her ranting and hung up on her. Here we go.

 **09:15 – Gilbert House - Porch**

"I don't set a lot of rules, Rosanna. Not with you. You are supposed to be the easy child! I thought we were passed all this. I thought that we had an understanding!" Jenna barked as she swung the front door open, just as my foot hit the bottom porch step. I almost recoiled as she appeared, I'd never heard her so mad. She gestured wildly to get my ass into the house.

"What the hell happened?!" She barked and slammed the door shut behind us.

"I-I was driving back from Bonnie's. Elena stayed the night but I didn't want to. I took my eyes off the road for one second-" I uttered sheepishly.

"You were texting?!" She barked,

"No!" I whined, "I swear! It was late, I just didn't see it. It was an animal or a deer or something! I swerved and next thing I knew there I was flipped over."

"Jesus Christ, Rosanna. And you didn't think to mention it when you came in last night?! Oh, by the way Jenna, I crashed my car, I may have internal injuries and whatnot, have a good night! I mean, come on! The windscreen is GONE! The road is covered in glass, it looked like you'd hit…a bear!" She scorned, "And the blood all over the dashboard?!" She was looking all over my head for any sign of cuts or mortal wounds by the sound of it. She scorned, "Come on. We're going to the emergency room right now, and the sheriff straight after. I don't think you realise how much trouble you're in!"

"No. I'm-I'm okay. Honestly! I was a little shaken up but-"

"No arguing!" Jenna scorned and grabbed her coat as she ushered me back out, "You could have a concussion!"

I panicked. Oh god. I won't. I won't have anything!

"I need to PEE." I shouted in her face and stormed upstairs. Can't blame a girl for a full bladder. Oh god. Anything I do is going to heal. I'm perfectly fine. CRAP.

 **09:43 – Mystic Falls Memorial Hospital - Emergency Room**

"Aunt Jenna, this is really all completely unnecessary, I feel fine-" I whispered.

"You're fine until you're not fine. I saw that brain documentary on Netflix, damn it Rosanna, we watched it together!" Jenna whipped back, "See! You don't remember. It got knocked out of your head."

"Rosanna Gilbert?" A doctor enquired. She had a kind smile.

I groaned and rose to my feet, "I'm sorry. I'm wasting your time."

"Waste it. Follow Meredith." Jenna hissed.

"I don't want to-"

"Why are you fighting me on this?!" Jenna groaned, "Until you're 18, I call your medical shots. Do the tests. For the very least, do it for my peace of mind!"

"It's compulsory, car crash victims must undergo extensive CT scanning and blood-work. I'm sorry. You can't leave. Hospital has to cover it's back." The doctor shrugged and invited me to follow her into an examination room, "I promise, I'll be as quick as I can. Have a seat over there. I'm Doctor Fell, you can call me Meredith."

"Fell? As in Edward Fell?" I uttered rapidly.

"That is my grandfather." Meredith smiled, "Is it the blood-toxicology test that you're worried about? Were you drinking last night, or did you take something you shouldn't have?"

"Wh-what? No? I'm not. No. I need to pee!" I babbled. I'm worried that you're going to ship me off to some underground mutant research society the second you read that blood report, and wonder how the hell I emerged from that crash without a scratch.

"I can't prevent you from doing so, but an empty tank won't excuse you from the test. It will just extend your visit." Meredith noted.

 **11:04 – Mystic Falls Memorial Hospital**

I snuck into the supply closet and furiously dialled his number, pacing the tiny walk-in cupboard frantically.

"Hello?" He rasped.

"Stefan!" I whispered, "Oh. Okay. Okay, I uh, I'm freaking out, and I really need you to-"

"What do you need?" He asked.

I stumbled on the words. How the hell do I phrase this?

"Rosanna? Where are you?" He asked.

"I'm-well, I'm in a supply closet, in the hospital, but that's not a super important detail! Jenna, and the sheriff…I-I had to get these tests, because I said I was in the crash-I covered for Elena. And…okay, I'm fine!" I laughed maniacally.

"You're a medical miracle." He drawled.

"Yes." I uttered, and paused before babbling, "But that's not it…they can't…they can't see the results…I can't explain it, okay, but-"

"I know. I'll handle it. Just do the tests." He rasped, and hung up.

"S-Stefan?" I whispered, "STEFAN. How? Hey, hello?"

 **19:26 – Gilbert House – Rosanna's Room**

 **NatAtac** : its actually ridiculous the amount of accidents you've had this year!

…

 **NatAtac** : OKAY! WAIT! the first one is not included in that, that sounds super cold! I didn't think x

 **RoJay** : don't worry. It IS ridiculous. I'm walking around in bubble wrap from now til senior yr.

 **RoJay** : I see I've been deleted from the cheer group chat. That took all of what, 5 minutes?

 **NatAtac** : u wanted nothing to do with us, traitor! Even before, you had it on mute half the time!

 **RoJay** : not the point. This mean we can't be friends anymore?

 **NatAtac** : nope! It's been fun, kid ;-)

 **RoJay** : feeling isn't mutual xoxo

 **NatAtac** : you love me really babes! what did Jenna say?

 **RoJay** : so, I'm grounded. Sheriff slapped me with a driving curfew, not allowed to drive at night, which is fine because I don't have a car anymore! It's written off. I have to walk straight home after school/practice.

 **NatAtac** : OWWW!

 **RoJay** : chores would have been added to my rap sheet, but I do them anyway, I live with a bunch of slobs.

 **NatAtac** : oh, you beautiful danger-to-other-road-users, you. You got some mean looking scars?

 **RoJay** : no. I was lucky.

There was a light tap on my door. Elena emerged hesitantly; she was wearing a beanie, clearly to disguise an actual injury of hers. I closed the lid on my laptop and turned to face her.

"Hi." She whispered and closed the door quietly behind her. She made her way awkwardly further into my room and sat down on the edge of my bed, half-heartedly looking through some study notes littering my bed. I watched her in amazement. I scoffed, folding my arms harshly across my chest, slouching back in my desk chair.

I sang, "So, how was your day?!"

Elena inhaled deeply and uttered, "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

"Whatever for?" I asked.

"I will…I will make it up to you."

"Cool. Is that all?"

"Ro…I don't know what else to say-"

I rose from my chair in anger as I scorned, "You know what, Elena? That was a pretty half-assed apology. You come into my room, two days after crashing my car, stinking of beer, and that's the best you can do?!"

"I never asked you to cover for me!" Elena barked back.

"You don't have to ask. I'm your sister. That's kind of in the job description. That's why…" I stormed over to my wardrobe and rifled around inside, "That's why there's a weird ass bong-thing in my sock drawer, that's why I was sat in the ER for 3 hours, getting poked and prodded, and got lectured by Sheriff Forbes for another 2!"

Elena was quiet, her eyes sunken. She nodded and sighed, "I'm sorry."

"Damn right you are! Look, Elena, I don't know what's going on with you. I know you're having a weird time right now, with whatever's going on with you and Stefan. But get it together." I uttered, "Even Jeremy is putting you to shame right now. And Damon?! Why the hell of all people, would you run off with Damon?!"

"I'm adopted." Elena uttered.

I stared back at her, blankly.

"Oh." I uttered.


	13. Maybe That's The Problem

**10:10 – Mystic Falls High School**

I glanced down at my phone, a simple message from Stefan:

 _It's done_.

How? Did he know someone at the hospital? Did he get rid of it? No, then they'd just ask for another test. How long does alcohol stick in the bloodstream? That's what they would've been looking for, surely. They wouldn't catch anything now, the test would be redundant.

My heart steadied in my chest; something was taken care of. Last night was consumed by Elena's revelation; my own uncertainty had fallen to the wayside. Stefan had done me a real solid, and perhaps just as he hadn't asked me for details, I shouldn't ask him for details. I trust him. I was covered by covering Elena. I should let it go.

"Are you alright?" Tyler asked me as I rummaged around in my locker before my next class. My shoulders bunched as his breath danced along my neck. He really didn't need to stand so close. It wasn't exactly unwelcome, but the line of questioning sure was.

I braced myself and turned, closing the locker slowly. I hummed, "Mmhmm, are you?"

"Well, sure. Caroline said you…crashed your car." Tyler said, his eyes dancing all over my body, checking my physical well-being?

"Right. Of course, she did." I uttered and brushed past. Of course, Caroline Forbes alerted everyone to the fact; her mom is the Sheriff and she is the town's gossip-monger.

"Hey. Ro?" He whispered harshly at my abrupt departure and grabbed my free hand, coaxing me to face him once more, "I'm serious, are you okay? What happened?"

"We don't have to do this, Tyler." I sighed and turned slightly to leave again but he held his grip on my wrist.

"Do what?" He asked, his tone dropped.

"I'm fine." I uttered and glanced down at his hold on me.

"No, come on, do what?" He rasped.

"Let go." I scorned.

"God, stop running away and finish a conversation, just this once, like a normal person!"

"Seriously? That's the best you can do? 'not a normal person'?" I scoffed back at him, "We don't have to do the fake concern thing, Tyler, it doesn't suit you!"

"Fake concern, huh?"

"I've had enough of your pity to last a life time, thanks." I scorned back at him, "Now let go of me."

"If that's what you want." He rasped and released his grip, storming off.

Upon reflection, no, Tyler did not entirely deserve that…

 **10:30 – Mystic Falls High School – History Class**

"Are you and Tyler on the rocks already?" Carly asked, leaning over my desk, invading any semblance of personal space.

"Class. Take your seats." Mr Saltzman requested. Carly proceeded to take the seat directly beside me. Hooray. I sighed and turned to face her briefly.

"Not today, Carly." I said, and returned to my notes.

"Okay, so he's fair game?" She asked, "Amber was asking."

"I thought she was into Matt?"

"No, Caroline has her claws in Matt now, she's playing the whole 'best friends, Netflix and chill' angle, which I gotta hand it to her, just might work. I see real power-couple potential there." Carly noted, clearly oblivious to the fact she was talking to herself, "And there's the whole pecking order thing, so, no, Amber wouldn't go there."

"But it's alright for her to harass _me_ about Matt?" I noted.

"Come on. He was never really yours, he was still Elena's at that point, let's be real. And you're just super easy to wind up. She was having fun."

"Super." I uttered.

"So, she has the green light for Tyler? I can tell her that?"

"Why would she wait for my permission? It's never stopped her before. And Tyler can do whatever the hell he wants."

"Huh." Carly huffed, staring at me, intensely.

"Huh? Huh, what?"

"Nothing. It's just super weird to me…he makes this grand gesture, and you're treating him like trash, yelling at him in the hallways, etc, etc. Is this a…still being super sad thing?"

"What grand gesture?" I asked, finally giving her my full attention.

"You think I deleted that video out of the goodness of my heart?" Carly asked, in a patronising tone. I stared back at her, blankly. What?

"Ladies." Mr Saltzman requested, "The lesson has started. Turn your attention to chapter four, please."

 **17:50 – Gilbert House**

"I spoke to the insurance company. Car's totalled. So, get used to walking everywhere, kid." Jenna declared as I sauntered into the kitchen. I shot a glare Elena's way.

"So, you're coming to the dance then?" Elena sighed, taking in Jenna's getup. Her tone was a tad frosty.

"Alaric asked me to help chaperone." Jenna sang in a happy tone.

"Why didn't you tell me Jenna?" Elena asked bluntly.

"That…feels like my cue to leave." I uttered awkwardly.

"Your mom was gonna do it eventually. I never thought I'd have to."

"If my mom were here right now and I asked. She'd tell me the truth."

"Your dad was about to leave the office one night when this girl showed up. She was 16, a runaway, and about to give birth. He delivered her baby, and gave her a place to stay, but a few days later she disappeared. And there you were. Your parents were trying so hard to have a baby. They'd tried everything. It just wasn't happening. All Miranda ever wanted was to be a mom. Little did she know…her last IVF cycle was going to give her twins." Jenna explained.

"Well, why were my parent's names on the birth certificate?" Elena asked.

"Your dad was a doctor, Elena. He took care of it." Jenna explained, "They didn't wanna lose you, so they kept it quiet, told as few people as possible but if anyone ever wanted proof they had documentation."

I froze at this revelation. Dad had doctored Elena's documentation to keep her origin a secret…had he done the same with mine? Did he make up bogus medical records to mask whatever the hell was wrong with me? They're _all_ in his name.

"What else do you know about her? The girl?" Elena asked.

"Just her name: Isobel."

 **20:10 – Mystic Falls High School – 50s Decade Dance**

"Are you ready Mystic Falls? It's time to get all shook up! UH HUH!" The enthusiastic DJ declared as an introduction to the dance team. We were essentially utilised as hype-men at these dances. We were obliged to perform 8 different elaborate dances, all particularly lively fast-paced numbers. It was assumed the student body didn't need inspiration for swaying back and forth.

By the time Jailhouse Rock came to an end, the dancefloor was thriving. I managed to pull my dance partner, Freddie, out of the crowd and poured him a drink. We clinked cups together and laughed.

"Okay, Dan's been making eyes at you all night, I think he's this close to throttling me." I chuckled and gestured towards the fella in question.

Freddie rolled his eyes and passed his cup back to me, "I better deal. See you for Tutti."

I laughed and nodded.

"Hey. Rosie!" Jenna called and made her way over to me, "Are you sure you should be pushing yourself like this? So soon after your accident? Your teacher got the doctor's note, right? Did they give you trouble about it?"

I sighed, "Jenna, honestly, I'm fine. I made a commitment. And I just want to get back to it. Speaking of which, Tyler-" I grabbed Tyler by the arm and dragged him out onto the floor. I shoved his arms around my waist and wrapped mine around his neck, glancing around discretely to see whether Jenna had sauntered off in defeat. I caught a glimpse of her flirting with Mr Saltzman. Okay. I exhaled, finally, and enjoyed the sound of Elvis proclaiming he couldn't help falling in love with me.

"You know, this hot and cold thing is getting a little old." He whispered in my ear. My skin tingled in delight. I was furious at my own body's betrayal, and hoped the dim lighting was masking any blush.

"I'm sorry." I uttered back, without thought, and relaxed my body a little. I was in the clear with Jenna, for now, no need to put on a front any more.

"Do my ears deceive me?" Tyler scoffed and pulled me in a little closer, in response. His toned, solid body was no longer respecting the distance prescribed in the dance rules posters. Yes, they were a real thing. I merely huffed in response. Ha. Ha.

"I'm sorry too. Since we're taking a break from being assholes to each other." Tyler declared and delighted in the furrowed response he received. I relented, perhaps exhausted from the dancing, or maybe it was from all the worry and the lies.

"I've had a time of it." I uttered to him, "You didn't entirely deserve everything I said to you. It's my deal, not yours."

"I'll take it." He smirked and nodded. His expression softened as he said, "You know, you can talk to me, right? Something's bumming you out or you need something? I know what it's like, being held to these ridiculous expectations. You always look like you've got the weight of the world on your shoulders, so when you're smiling, heck, maybe I just don't get to see it enough, but…it's something else."

My eyes shot up to his, and found sincerity. I didn't get to see that in him, not nearly enough. I cleared my throat and said, "Thank you."

He nodded, "It's alright." As he spoke, his hands slid from the small of my back around to my hips, I felt the gentle pressure of his thumbs tracing the natural curve south and back again. Pleasure rippled throughout my body. My hands found the nape of his neck and slid down to his solid, broad chest; I felt tiny in his arms, surrounded. It felt, like I was on auto-pilot, like the actions weren't my own, it was just my body responding to his. I wanted this feeling. And…being out of control scared me.

"Don't." I whispered. I wasn't entirely certain it was audible, given the racket of my pounding heart.

"Don't what?" He asked, matching my tone. His eyes were locked onto mine as my brow furrowed.

"Don't touch me like that." I barely managed to huff out.

"Like you want me to?" He whispered.

"Yes." I rasped, our eyes still locked. His hand brushed my cheek, and found its way under my chin, guiding my lips towards his until-

"Time to kick it back up a notch, Mystic Falls! How do you feel about getting a little fruity?" The DJ bellowed into the microphone, stopping both our hearts. Tyler and I had both jumped back at the interruption. The DJ got a stern lecture for his introductions skirting the lines of appropriateness.

"Rosie! There you are!" Freddie scorned and hissed, grabbing my wrist and dragging me further to the front. We had a job to do.

"Break a leg." Tyler uttered as I was dragged away, clearly disappointed.

Tutti Frutti jived its way onto the sound system and we were off. This was the last thing I wanted to be doing right now. I was flustered, and confused, and wanted to see how that played out!

"Did I just see what I thought I saw?!" Freddie asked as he lifted me into the air, and spun me around. I rolled off his back and rolled my eyes simultaneously.

"I saw that!" He hissed and spun me around. 50s style dancing was essentially just jumping around and being thrown around a bit with a massive smile on your face. It was relentless.

"This is the most exhausting decade, am I right?!" I panted.

"You've got to be careful with the pretty ones, honey." Freddie informed me as we prepared for the big finale.

"I'm always careful." I scorned back, "And maybe that's the problem!"


	14. Out Flipping Cars or Something

**19:12 – Mystic Falls High School – Gymnasium**

"Do you need a ride?" Vanessa asked, swinging her bag over her shoulder.

"No." I replied, "Thank you. It's my turn, I'll be a while."

"Okay, a bunch of us are going to the Grill later, if you're about. See you later!" Vanessa smiled and left me to it.

I gathered up the rest of the mats and stacked them neatly in the corner. It was my turn to tidy up the gym post-gymnastics practice. The janitor, Mr Macon, let us run as late as we wanted in exchange for leaving the place immaculate, locking up, and posting the key through his office door. It was a pretty laid-back practice, by our standards; as was our way this time of year. Coach Hanley was also a Spanish teacher, and spent most of the scheduled practice grading papers before leaving us to our own devices.

After order was restored, I pulled myself into my hoodie and slipped into my backpack, turned out the lights and locked the gym. I shoved my hands into my pockets and sauntered down the hallway, contemplating whether or not I'd swing by the Grill after dinner. What was tonight…I was supposed to be watching and live-tweeting the new episode of The Walking Dead with Natalie tonight, oh and that damn history report still needs-oh shit.

I scorned and turned on my heel. My history notes were still in my locker; I was supposed to grab them right after lunch, I was heading that way; don't worry, you'll remember them after 5th period, no, you'll remember them before practice. Doughnut. Thank god, I remembered now. I swirled around until my locker clicked open and I rifled through: there they are.

I closed my locker shut and turned to leave once more. A rattling behind me snatched my attention. I turned sharply back to glance around the poorly-lit hallway. It wasn't especially horror-movie-like until that exact moment. The lights were on power-saving mode, it wasn't pitch black, but now…it was perfectly enhancing the weird-noise ambience.

"Hello?" I uttered, in a rather mousey tone, "Mr Macon? Ness?"

That noise again. Before I'd taken one more step, Mr Saltzman shot out of the room with what looked like a decked-out Nerf gun, with stabby wooden sticks for bullets rather than wholesome spongey ones.

"Holy-sh-hey…Hi, Mr Saltzman." I huffed out, clutching my chest.

"Rosanna." He nodded awkwardly, "What are you doing here?"

"Gymnastics. Uh, almost forgot my his-notes…for another subject. What's that for?" I asked, straining my gaze in the dim light to check I wasn't imagining it.

"My uh…my predecessor had a run in with a wild animal of sorts-" Mr Saltzman offered, "Precaution."

I cringed, remembering the man's demise in vivid detail. I cleared my throat and uttered, "Oh. Yeah. I think they got it though…"

"Chapter 4 has a lot of what you're after, for that paper that's definitely not for my class." Mr Saltzman declared, "Goodnight."

"Thank you." I uttered quietly and started off for Mr Macon's office.

 **19:24 – Mystic Falls High School – Exterior**

"What…why are you here? Do you even still go here?" I asked, and muttered under my breath, "This is a really weird night."

"I've been instructed to round up the stragglers." Stefan noted warmly. He was leaning against the school entrance coolly and gestured to lead the way.

"Ah." I scoffed, "So, Jenna's worried I'm out flipping cars or something."

"She did say to be home by seven." Stefan noted, plainly.

"It was my turn to clean up." I noted, and turned to face him, "Since when are you in her employ?"

"You said it was a weird night?" Stefan asked, completely disregarding my sass, with a kind face. Okay, someone has super-sonic bat-hearing, noted.

"Yeah. Mr Saltzman had this modified Nerf-gun thing, it was wild. He's worried about that beast that got Mr Tanner. I told him they got it a while back, he doesn't need to be so…paranoid." I rattled on.

"It's getting dark early." Stefan offered. Well, yeah, I guess.

"Yeah, but…he made that. Maybe that's his hobby or something? Crafting elaborate weapons." I uttered, to myself, "Jenna sure knows how to pick them." I glanced over at him, and gestured to the bundle of papers stuffed in his back pocket. I asked, "You forget your history notes too?"

Stefan waited a beat before answering, "Mr Saltzman was helping me catch up. I have missed a lot. You're still feeling the repercussions of covering for Elena. I had a part to play in that. I wanted to apologise." Stefan said, with a dulcet tone. I glanced over to him, and noted his sincerity; not that I ever expected to see anything but a furrowed brow.

"Oh. No. It's okay." I replied, "She's…going through something. I'm glad I can take a little bit of the heat off. And it's mostly died down now."

"Your arm healed nicely." Stefan declared, "You would never know it was torn to shreds mere weeks ago."

I felt my cheeks burn, and offered nothing more than a huff of restrained laughter. The streetlights weren't bright enough to betray my squirm. My sleeves were rolled down; I wore long sleeves to school, to the gym, to prevent this exact interaction.

"Yeah. It doesn't hurt." I uttered quietly. Was this my window? I couldn't tell. I didn't want to tell. What? You've been agonising over this for weeks on end. Spit it out. No? Nothing. More pleasantries. More small talk.

"Thank you for calling me, back there, at the hospital." Stefan declared, as we reached the porch steps, "I want you to know that you can, anytime you need help."

I stared back at the guy, warmed by the sentiment, but a little confused at the same time.

"I'm kind of hoping that's the last time I'll need to, but thank you." I uttered as Damon, of all people, swung my front door wide open.

"WELL?" He said, with eyes just as wide. I nodded to Stefan and brushed past Damon. I exchanged a look with Elena and pointed back at the guy. She merely shook her head and followed the brothers outside on to the porch, closing the door behind her.

 **20:30 – Duke's Party – Mystic Falls Forest Trail**

"Whoa, I'm definitely not drunk enough, so I'm gonna get another beer." Tyler snorted and skulked away, leaving Caroline and Matt alone. They looked like they were about to get into it. He swiped past me as I approached them all, grabbing my hand as he did. He laughed, "NOPE! This way, Little Gilbert. You do not wanna stick around for this."

"What is that all about?" I asked, glancing back at them; Caroline was busy chewing Matt's ear off whilst he merely stared back in amazement.

"Jealousy looks terrible on you, kid." Tyler whispered in my ear.

"It was just a question. Here's another, may I have my hand back?" I sassed.

"Do you want it back?" Tyler asked, coyly. I snatched it back and he laughed playfully.

"You want a beer?" I asked him.

"That is just where I was headed." He grinned and flung an arm around my shoulders.

 **23:17 – Lockwood Manor – Tyler's Bedroom**

I remember laughing with him that night. The heavens had opened on the Duke Party. Tyler's house was closest. Is it completely naïve of me to say it? I was only there to get dry, and then to head home. He'd made his position clear. His mom had shown him how to tumble dry clothes. It was innocent.

"It's really hammering down now." Tyler sighed as he peered out of his bedroom window. It was wild out there.

"It wasn't before?" I scoffed.

He turned back to face me and slowly leant against the window sill. A small smile broke upon his face as he took in the girl before him. I was just squeezing my hair dry with a towel, nothing worthy of that look. I was wearing an old football jersey of his; it came down to just passed my bottom, but I hadn't noticed until he fixated on it. My shoulders had fallen since I'd donned his clothes and escaped my soaked ones; but there was something more to it; I was lighter too.

I caught his line of sight and blushed. I avoided his eyes for the first time that night; I hadn't done that in a while. My heart thumped in my chest. I thought I was carrying myself the same, but it was futile now. He knew every nuance of my poker face; he knew me. He rose and met me. He brushed my cheek, guiding my eye-line to his; he tucked a strand behind my ear and simply relished the moment. This is how it should have been, that night at the dance. I lost myself in his dark brown eyes and felt something I didn't quite understand at the time. Something in my eyes must have told him that he needn't say anything in this moment. This was new, for us both. Something resonating within him sought to pull me close; I felt it; but the last piece was holding him back.

"Rose-" He drawled.

"Kiss me." I interrupted him.

My eyes were dancing between his. A small grin crooked across his face as he stepped into me, our eyes locked together. There it was. He raised both hands up to my face and guided my lips towards his. The overwhelming feeling of release rippled throughout my entire body, and the outside world fell away. His hands wandered down to my hips, his body was thrust against mine. He kissed me passionately, exactly how I wanted him to, picked me up with one arm and felt my hands drape around his neck. He carried us over to his bed. My hands disappeared under his shirt, against his solid chest; I pulled his shirt up and helped him out of it. He returned the favour.

His touch against my naked skin rippled throughout my entire body. He broke away abruptly, much to my dismay, and rasped, "Tell me to stop, and I will."


	15. Hit Me Where It Hurts

**10:43 – 312 Boulder Avenue**

Jenna had dug around for more information on Elena's birth parents. She'd found a potential lead in the form of an old high school friend of Isobel Fleming: Trudie Peterson. Elena was adamant that she wanted to go alone, then she wasn't going to go at all; she flip-flopped a couple more times. We all dropped it for a while. Elena changed her mind again last minute. She hijacked our trip on the way back from picking up groceries by taking us to this woman's house.

"I shouldn't go in. It's rude. I should…leave a letter or something? Something with no obligation attached." Elena babbled, mostly to herself.

"You're not gonna get any answers sat out here and the ice cream is melting as we speak." I uttered after a few silent minutes sat outside of Trudie Peterson's house. I opened the door and got out of the car, uttering, "Come on."

I knocked on the door and then stood behind Elena, who was playing with her fingers nervously.

"Tru-Trudie Peterson?" Elena asked the woman.

"Yes." She nodded, uncertainly, but kindly.

"My name is Elena Gilbert, this is my sister, Rosanna. I wanted to talk to you about Isobel Flemming." Elena explained.

"Well, I haven't heard that name in years. How do you girls know her?" She asked.

"I think that, um, well…" Elena uttered.

"Do you know if she had a baby that she gave up for adoption?" I asked and gestured clearly towards Elena.

"My God." Trudie gasped and her gaze settled on Elena, really taking in her features this time, "You're her daughter…I was just gonna make some tea. Would you like some? Um, the kitchen's this way."

"I wasn't gonna come." Elena uttered as we entered the home.

"No duh." I uttered under my breath.

"I didn't think I was, but I was driving, and I hit this stoplight, and it made me think about when I was learning to drive and my mom would always warn me about this blind turn on the left-hand side, and then I was thinking about my mom, and I had your address and I'm really sorry for just barging in like this." Elena babbled.

"It's no problem. Um, just a surprise though. I haven't thought about Isobel in years." Trudie said, and invited us to sit at her table.

"When was the last time you saw her?" I asked Trudie, to get the ball rolling, and give Elena a moment to settle herself.

"About 17 years ago, when she left to have the baby-well, you." Trudie smiled and shrugged her shoulders, "We kept in touch for a while but, well, you know, people drift apart."

"And you don't know where she ended up?" Elena asked.

"She was in Florida for a while. She was on her own. I know it wasn't easy." Trudie answered, vaguely.

"Do you have any idea who my father is?" Elena asked. My ears pricked up.

"I could never get her to fess up." Trudie disclosed, disappointingly, "Anyway, she finally pulled it together, got into college on a scholarship."

"Which one?" I asked.

"Somewhere in North Carolina. Duke, I think. Smart girl, smart school." Trudie grinned and noted the kettle whistling, "Let me just grab that."

"Thank you for pushing me to do this." Elena smiled and squeezed my hand.

Trudie got her high school yearbooks out and reminisced about the old days with her best friend.

"You haven't touched your tea, Elena." Trudie noted.

I'd already finished mine, but my sister was too absorbed in memory lane.

"Oh." Elena smiled and took a sip but stopped abruptly, "What kind of tea is this?"

"Just an herbal mixture." Trudie stuttered quickly, and returned to the books.

"Vervain?" Elena asked, quietly, her eyes still buried in Trudie, "You…know."

"Know what?" Trudie smiled, awkwardly.

"You didn't invite me in, and you're serving…vervain tea. You know." Elena uttered.

"What?" I asked.

She was being a first-class weirdo. They both were.

"I think that you should probably leave." Trudie declared and rose from her seat sharply. Her words came out in one continuous stream without a pause.

"Wait. What are you not telling me?" Elena asked.

"Please leave. Now!" Trudie barked.

Elena nodded to me. We grabbed our stuff and left the house.

"What the hell was that about?" I asked my sister as we stormed back to the car.

"Get in the car." Elena uttered, shakily, as we both caught sight of the man standing in the middle of the road, a few yards away.

"What the-" I muttered.

He was just standing there. He began to walk towards us.

"RO. GET IN." Elena ordered, and we sped away from there.

I turned back in my seat and watched the man continue to walk a certain pace after us, and disappear from sight as we turned the corner.

"Elena. What the hell happened back there?" I asked my sister, "Why did she freak out? Who was that man?"

"He looked weird, right?" Elena uttered, "I got a bad vibe."

"Why do I even bother trying to talk to you? Or ask you anything? I just get cagey responses and weird men stalking us!" I scorned at my sister.

"I shouldn't have brought you to begin with. I'm sorry." Elena responded.

"Elena! I'm your sister! I want to be here for you, so stop shutting me out." I implored.

"Some things I have to do by myself." Elena uttered, "And…you're not my sister. I don't have a sister. Jeremy has a sister."

"Nice. Whatever, Elena."

I'd later learn that Elena was doing her utmost to keep Jeremy and I at arm's length, to keep us safe. She was terrified, and so uncertain of what the future held; to keep us ignorant, for even that little while longer, was something she needed to do. She knew that we would do anything to help her out, and the only way to keep us at bay, was to hit us where it hurt.

 **20:14 – Gilbert House – Rosanna's Room**

I'd spent the night doing a little research of my own. Vervain was potent herb that was fabled to protect against…no. Vicki Donovan had…she'd a killer migraine, she couldn't handle any light in the room…sunlight. She attacked me…she bit me. The paper cut…she could smell it. I can't be a vampire...I don't want to eat people, and Vicki bit me after. Maybe I'm some sort of mutant? Like the X-men? Or like...a really shit vampire, with only the good stuff, like being indestructible? Are vampires completely indestructible? This all accelerated after the accident. Chemicals dumped in the lake?

"Hey…Jer?" I asked as I tapped on his door.

"Yeah?" He called.

I could hear a girl giggling in the background.

"Oh. Sorry. I-I didn't know you had company." I uttered.

"No, it's alright. Ro, this Anna. Anna, this is my-" Jeremy introduced.

"Twin sister, right? Whoa. Freaky." Anna grinned.

"I'll come back later." I uttered.

"No. I will." Anna smiled and said her goodbyes to Jeremy.

"What's up?" Jeremy asked.

"Um…that journal you were reading, I was wondering if I could take a look it?"

"Oh, yeah, sure. It's over here somewhere, but just to warn you, it isn't for the faint-hearted. The guy was a total nut job, its full of plots and schemes against vampires." Jeremy laughed. My heart plummeted to the floor, down through to the next floor and slammed into the basement.

"Whoa." I scoffed. That's all I could say.

 **07:32 – Mystic Falls High School – Outdoor Track**

It was Saturday morning. I awoke before anyone else in the house and snuck out to the track. I felt...calm. I had a habit of coming out here from time to time, before anyone else rocked up, mostly to clear my head, to work through whatever was bothering me at the time. There was something so eerie and weirdly peaceful about being in a usually busy place when it was deadly quiet. I knew perfectly well that I'd reached a brick wall, there was nothing more to work out here. There were no more leads. Elena was sketchy. Our ancestor was a vampire-hunting kook, with a very detailed account of what I was looking for; I fit one out of a million symptoms. Mr Saltzman wasn't some crazy inventor afraid of indoor mountain lions. Stefan was unquestioning and way too helpful. Jeremy was out of his emo phase. I was...a total complete freak. This much was certain.

I finished the lap and staggered up to the bleachers. I'd never thought like this before, please do believe me. I was...certain. They're not that high. Okay...they seem a lot higher now that I'm standing right on top of them. But they're not. I wouldn't die...would I? No. I wouldn't die anyway, but _I_ most certainly wouldn't die. I closed my eyes and took a step. I regretted it the millisecond I'd done it.

"FUUUU-"

SMACK. A pause, a heartbeat; a tsunami wave of pain.

"AHHHHH!" I screamed out and struggled up off my side. My leg was...not the right way! I screamed out and cursed and cried. WHAT THE FUCK?! Adrenaline took over, as I couldn't remove my eyes from the horror, and I found my hands touching it. I shuddered and suppressed the vomit as I snapped it back into place. I screamed out once more and sat there for a while, just cradling my leg, cradling my fucked up leg and crying to myself.

It took a few minutes more for the sensation to dissipate, and a few moments more for the courage to build up; I looked at my leg.

It still was tender...but...

I struggled, on shaky arms, to push myself up off of the ground and find my feet.

I took a step forward, and then another. I glanced around and then down at my leg; I shuffled back around the bleachers, more and more pressure falling onto my leg. I sat down at the bottom, carefully, and pulled up my legging...dark purple bruising, no inflammation...it was dispersing before my eyes. I rolled it down hurriedly, and stared out over the track.

...okay.


	16. We Should Talk

**16:49 - Gilbert House - Hallway**

Someone was battering down on the front door. I paused for a moment, my hand hovering over the door handle. The last time someone was smacking on the door like that, Vicki Donovan chowed down on my arm. And Vicki was…well, it was daytime. Then I remembered; it is pretty raining buckets today, maybe that's her seizing her overcast chance? Coming back to finish me off…

"GOD! Someone get that!" Elena bellowed from upstairs as the banging continued.

I shook my head and peeked through the peephole. I sighed and opened the door.

"Elena's ignoring me." Damon drawled.

"Probably for valid reason." I scorned back.

Damon smirked and pushed his way inside.

"The 6 missed calls? Sorry. My phone is dead." Elena sassed as she came downstairs to greet her guest.

What was with this guy? Why does she put up with him?

"Is Stefan here?" Damon demanded.

"No. Why?" Elena asked.

"He went out to the woods and didn't come back. I can't get him on his phone. I figured he was here with you." Damon explained in a rather patronising tone.

"Why would Stefan go out in this?" I asked, but went ignored.

The storm was only picking up in ferocity, why would anyone go out for a stroll in this?

"It's going straight to voicemail. Where could he be?" Elena asked. She was starting to panic now.

"You're not gonna like what I'm thinking." Damon uttered.

Elena's eyes grew large and she grabbed her coat from down the hall.

"What's wrong?" I implored, but once again went unnoticed, "Elena?!"

"Stay here, Ro." Elena ordered and followed Damon out of the door.

I watched them run over to Damon's car and skid down the street.

 **17:23 -Ridgeland Farm - Grounds**

I followed them, on my bike, to a house on the edge of town, out by Ridgeland Farm. Elena stayed in the car, hidden at the edge of the woods. Damon disappeared up to the house, but came back empty handed. They got into an argument; Elena was pissed, she pushed Damon in the chest, he didn't flinch. They left. He must be in there. Why didn't they go in?!

I crept towards the house slowly. I could hear rock music blaring from inside. I waited. I overheard a conversation as I waited behind the log store; changing of the guard. The new guard went downstairs into the basement with a knife and an old bottle. I ducked. I crept around to another window. I saw a man bite down on an older woman's arm. She looked delighted. She offered her arm again, but he declined as he wiped the blood from his mouth. Holy shit, this was real.

Stefan was in that basement. I crept around and found the external entrance, down some crumbling steps. I slid through a creaky gate and made my way down to the basement door. There was no one in sight. They were all partying upstairs. I elbowed the glass and waited for movement, before carefully sliding my arm through and unlocking the door. I picked up an old chair leg for protection and peered around the hallway. Someone was sat in front of the door, with headphones in. That explained why my entrance had attracted no attention. Shit. How am I gonna get around him?

"HEY." The man barked. I hadn't retreated into cover quick enough. SHIT. SHIT.

SMACK. I heard the body slump to the ground. I froze. My own body was shoved harshly against the wall. I winced at the force and groaned at the pressure. That was damn fast.

"Are you insane?!" Damon scorned in my face, "What the hell are you doing here?!"

"Shut up!" I scorned and glanced around the room, "There's way more-"

"I know that! How the hell do you-goddammit. GO HOME RIGHT NOW." Damon scorned and buried his eyes into mine. He scoffed and relinquished his grasp, awaiting a response.

"No." I shook my head defiantly and motioned to move back around the corner.

He looked taken aback, and snatched me back, pushing me against the wall again. He cleared his throat and grabbed my face, staring harshly into my eyes once more, "I said, go home. Now."

"Get off me, Damon! Stefan is in there, I'm sure of it!" I scorned and struggled out of his concrete grasp. My arms were getting sore struggling against him.

"Why can't you be compelled?" He scorned, tightening his grip on me, putting an end to the struggle.

"Your argument is flawed? It's just one sentence?"

"Stefan has you chowing down on Vervain soup?"

I uttered, "We don't have time for this!"

"Fine. If you die, it's not on me."

I glared back at him and scorned, leading the way into the room.

"Ro-you shouldn't be here." Stefan coughed. He was strung up to the ceiling, his wrists bleeding, stabbed, burnt, battered and bruised. He was a mess.

"I didn't bring her. Don't look at me like that!" Damon scoffed and went to untie him.

"No. There's vervain on the ropes." Stefan grunted.

"Junior. Pull on that." Damon ordered.

I did as I was told, and Stefan fell to the floor, groaning in agony.

"Alright. Let's go. Clothes on." Damon sighed and headed for the door.

"Wait." Stefan groaned as I helped him to his feet and threw a hoodie over him.

"What? Guys, come on! We have to get out of here!" Damon scorned.

Stefan stumbled to the other man and ripped the stake out of the man's leg. He couldn't leave this man vulnerable like this. "The other one." Stefan huffed out.

I ripped out the other stake and held back the vomit.

"The car is parked at the southern entrance to the farm, by the woods, can you get him there?" Damon asked me, as I struggled to get Stefan's arm around me, and hold him up.

I nodded.

"Alright. Go."

"What about you?" I asked.

"You rescue, I'll distract. Go." Damon ordered and I dragged Stefan out of the cellar, into the pouring rain.

We stumbled through the field and eventually hit the woodland.

"Can you make it?!" I huffed out.

I was supporting almost all of Stefan's weight. We fell to the ground. He fell on top of me. I'd put out my hand to cushion my fall and cut it on something.

"Ungh. You okay?" Stefan groaned.

"Yeah." I winced and clenched my fist, "Come on, we gotta keep going. Come on! It's right over here. AAAAHHH!"

I was thrown into a tree. Spots danced over my vision as I doubled over in agony. A blur smacked into Stefan repeatedly.

"This is for Bethanne!" The man growled and stabbed Stefan with a wooden stake. Stefan roared out in agony, as the man bellowed, "And this is for the tomb!"

I don't know where it came from. It all happened so quickly. I'd snatched up something from the ground and ran it through the man. Just like Johnathan Gilbert's research had told me. The man slumped to the ground. I fell to Stefan's motionless side and shook him as he fell unconscious.

"Stefan! STEFAN!" I bellowed in his face as I shook him, "HEY! HEY! Stefan! Please, hey! Please get up! Stefan."

I heard a rustling behind me. The man wasn't knocked out. He was coming to. SHIT.

Stefan's nose wrinkled and his eyes shot open to mine. A smudge of my blood was on his cheek from harshly trying to rouse him. He wrestled with his own mind, covering his nose, groaning out in agony.

I cried, "What are you doing?! Get up! NOW!"

I pulled on his clothes and with his last ounce of energy, he pushed me back harshly. He glanced down in terror at my blood stains.

"Ro…run." He breathed out, and grasped my wrist, staring at the blood. He desperately tried to quell his shaking body. He was telling me to run in one breath, and gripping me tightly in the other. He huffed out, "No." His grip loosened on my wrist.

"No! Come on! Get up!" I whispered to him, slapping his face awake again.

He groaned and snatched my wrist once more. This time it was crushing. I buckled under the pain.

"Ro…run." He growled.

His eyes turned darker, the skin under them hardened and contorted.

"Do it." I uttered darkly to him.

He groaned and his eyes fell softer, but my lock on him didn't falter. He bit down on my wrist and I winced and then cried out in pain. It was searing, a sharp stabbing pain, then diluted by light-headedness, and sheer exhaustion. I must have blinked. I felt like I was going to faint. I was on the ground, on my hands and knees. When I came to, the man was kebabbed on a tree branch, and Stefan was covered in his blood. He was fine now. He was a completely different person.

"STEFAN!" I heard Elena scream out.

 **18:45 – Gilbert House**

"Rosanna. We should talk." Elena uttered as we came into the house.

I caressed my bandaged hand and wrist. Stefan had sorted me out at the Salvatore House, and the pair of them had coddled me as though they were my parents.

"We _should_ talk, Elena. But the funny thing is…every time I try to…you just lie to me. So, here's a wild idea, how about you tell whatever story you've cooked up on the drive home, to this-" I suggested, pushing a picture of me from the hallway table into her hands.

I stormed up the stairs and slammed my bedroom door behind me.

"I wanted to tell you everything, Rosanna. I've been buried under secrets for as long as I can remember, but I thought I was doing the right thing by keeping you out of it. I never wanted you or Jeremy in danger. What were you even doing at that house?! You could've got yourself killed, tonight. You know that, right?!" Elena babbled on from the other side of the door.

I threw on a clean, dry outfit, pulled my hair up into a messy bun, touched up my make-up and opened my door again, almost smacking into Elena.

"Where are you going? You really should rest!" Elena uttered meekly as I brushed past her.

"I probably should right, given that I'm running on half empty."

"Stefan said he was sure he didn't take that much."

"Oh. Well, that makes it all okay then. If he's back from the brink of death, who cares." I sang sarcastically and picked up her car keys from the table, "You don't mind if I borrow this, right? I mean, it's the least you can do, given you totalled mine, oh, and your vampire boyfriend sucked my blood tonight."

"Where are you going?" Elena uttered.

Hearing the words come out of my mouth had thrown her for six. I just scoffed and left her standing there; maybe I was delirious from blood loss, maybe I was trying to protect my own mind from what just happened. Ro the Robot blocked it out and carried on with her evening.

 **19:04 – The Mystic Grill**

"Who's your dad's friend?" I asked, curling my arm around the pool cue.

"I didn't think you'd show up." Tyler said, prying the cue from my hands, "It's pretty wild out there."

"I'm a lot tougher than I look." I shrugged, and watched him pot two balls.

"Yeah, I can see that." Tyler whispered in my ear and brushed my arm gently, bringing up my bandaged wrist.

He asked if I'd been scrapping and handed the cue back to me. I smirked and lined up a shot.

"Happened at practice." I lied.

"You must have your own room at the hospital, by now." He laughed.

"Tyler." I uttered.

"Rosanna."

"Did you get Carly to delete that video?"

Tyler's eyes widened, and he smirked, "Yeah."

"You didn't…brag about it, anything."

"It made things easier for you, did it's job." Tyler shrugged, and lined up his next shot, "So, did you quit everything? Hit the reset button?"

I couldn't take my eyes off him as he shrugged it off, like it was no big deal.

I said, "1 of 3. But it was _my_ decision for once, which meant a lot. So, thank you."

"Anytime." He uttered and stepped into me, kissing me sweetly.

 **20:35 – The Mystic Grill**

"Who is that woman? I think her daughter's dating Jeremy or something, she's always at our house." I asked.

" _She_ …is not my mother." Tyler scoffed, and glared over at his father flirting with the new woman, "You know what, do you wanna get out of here?"

"It's pretty wild out there, Ty." I repeated his early sentiment and glanced back at the rain smacking against the windows, "The terrace?"

Tyler nodded and took my hand, leading me outside on to the sheltered terrace out back, where the smokers would hang out. Luckily for us, it was empty.

"Can't stand him when he's like this." Tyler scorned, "He's such an embarrassment. The second she steps away, he's eyeing up the 'rich, important constituents'. Funny how it's _only_ ever the hot ones, and _never_ the dudes."

"Ty-" I uttered as he got worked up.

"My mom doesn't deserve half the shit she has to put up with."

I embraced Tyler as he ranted. He stopped, and wrapped his arms around me, tightly.

"You cold?" He asked.

I shook my head once, "No."

"I'm sorry. I'm a pretty shit date tonight." He sighed.

I rose to meet his gaze and uttered, "Don't be. This is a date, huh?"

He bent down and met my lips with a smirk. He kissed me gently, at first, slowly, he took his time. The day melted away. My wrist no longer stung. My mind no longer whirled. I don't know how long we were out there for.

"Tyler!" Mayor Lockwood barked, "Grab your stuff. We gotta go."

"Kind of in the middle of something, dad." Tyler groaned, and pulled away, but didn't let go of me.

"They found Vicki Donovan." Mayor Lockwood explained, and we both fell apart from each other.

"Are you serious?" Tyler asked.

"Where was she?" I asked.

"Storm unearthed the grave off County Road." Mayor Lockwood said. My heart plummeted. My mind was sent racing. What a nice little escape from reality we'd just endured. Mayor Lockwood brought us sharply back down to reality, finishing with, "They just brought her body down to the morgue."

"She-she's-" I muttered.

"Come on. We gotta go." Mayor Lockwood demanded. I nodded to Tyler and we left with his dad. Matt needed us. Jeremy needed me. Vicki…she was a vampire. She had been. She was dead.

 **21:14 – Gilbert House**

"Jer…are you okay?" I asked as Elena and Jeremy stepped into the house.

"I'm gonna go get some sleep." Jeremy responded in a monotone and trudged up the stairs into his room.

I glanced over at Elena, her eyes were sunken. Now wasn't the time. I stepped towards my sister and embraced her, tightly.

"I'm sorry." Elena whispered as she sobbed.

"I'm sorry!" I sobbed back.

Elena and I talked all night. She parted with everything she knew. She knew that Vicki was a vampire, Damon had turned her, but she didn't know Vicki was dead. Vicki had told her she was leaving, to protect Jeremy from all of this, she said it was hard but it was for the best.

I believed her. I believed I was finally hearing the whole truth.


	17. That's No Concern Of Mine

**08:30 – Gilbert House - Hallway**

"Hey, I'm gonna tell Jeremy after school." Elena whispered to me.

"Tell him…what exactly?" I asked and handed over her coffee travel mug.

"About me being adopted." Elena uttered pensively.

"You're not worried about it, are you?" I asked, "Come on, you're his second-favourite sister, that's not going to change."

Elena scoffed and called out, "Come on Jeremy, going to school. Walking out the door, now!" She turned back to me and sighed, "I know. It's just weird. It's weird thinking one thing your entire life and then 'uh oh' that's not the case."

"Yeah, but when it comes to the 'stuff we need to wrap our heads around' these days, adoption's gonna be a breeze." I uttered and was met with an eye roll by Elena.

"Hey, you forgot this." Jenna said as she tossed Elena her purse.

Elena thanked her and swung the door open, only to freeze in place at the face that greeted us.

"Elena." Uncle John greeted her.

"Uncle John. Hi." Elena uttered monotonously.

"Rosanna. Jenna." Uncle John nodded to us both.

"Yep. That's everyone." I muttered.

"John. You made it." Jenna sighed, less than enthusiastically.

"Said I'd be in by noon." John stated.

"Oh, what you say and what you do are typically two very different things." Jenna smirked as John stepped into the house, and she exchanged a funny look with everyone.

"Uncle John, what's up?" Jeremy greeted him and sauntered straight out the door before he could reply.

"Hey. I had some business in town. I thought a visit was in order." John explained.

"How long are you staying?" Jenna asked, getting right to it.

"I don't know yet." John dismissed her.

Great.

"Hmm. Ok. Well, we're gonna go to school. See you later." Elena said and pushed me out the door.

 **17:30 – Gilbert House - Dining Room**

"I have no interest in the Founder's Day Kick-Off Party." Jeremy scoffed at the notion.

"Sure, you do. It's tradition." John stated.

"Far be it for us to break from tradition." Jenna declared, sarcastically.

"The Gilberts have been a part of this town for 150 years, one of the founding families, and with that distinction comes certain obligations, including going to the party. One day when you can appreciate the significance, I'll tell you all about your heritage." John proclaimed to Jeremy, with pomp and air.

"Is this a 'my father bored by his father' thing? I get out of it right?" I asked.

"The women of the Gilbert family were arguably even more impressive." John declared. Great.

"Hmm. The Gilbert Family Legacy. I forgot how sacred it was. I'm not a Gilbert, so I was never cool enough to hear it." Jenna scoffed.

"Why does she hate you?" Jeremy asked his uncle.

"We used to sleep together." John declared.

"I'm standing right here!" Jenna scorned, throwing an empty pasta box at the man.

"Let me help you there, Jenna." John scoffed and gathered up the dinner plates.

"So, Elena's…" Jeremy whispered to me, once they were out of ear shot.

"Yep." I nodded.

"Sure…you're not?" Jeremy scoffed.

"Nope, you're stuck with me."

 **20:30 – Lockwood Manor – 150** **th** **Founder's Day Anniversary Party**

"Rosanna." Stefan uttered from behind me.

Freddie nodded and said he'd catch up with me later, but not before exchanging a raised eyebrow with me.

Stefan leant in and whispered, "We need to talk."

"That sounds serious." I whispered back and stepped back almost instantly, "Phew. Someone had a little pregame."

"What happened that night-" Stefan uttered.

"Stefan. It's okay. This probably isn't the venue-" I uttered and glanced around the room.

"I just wanted to say, I'm sorry for hurting you." Stefan stated, sincerely.

"We didn't have a choice."

"I don't…do that. Anymore." Stefan spoke cautiously, "I hunt animals. I chose a different way of life, a long time ago."

"Hey. I'm not here to judge." I sighed.

"No. I uh, I can't tell if what's happening to me is because…I broke some decades long fast…or because of you." Stefan whispered.

My eyes shot from the dance floor, up to his.

"What _is_ happening to you?" I asked, cautiously.

"I shouldn't be this strong. I shouldn't have recovered my strength so quickly. I've never felt this strong before."

"I'm not gonna profess to know a lot about this, but maybe your body didn't know what it was missing? Maybe, as horrible as it sounds out loud, that's just what you are." I uttered back.

"No. Rosanna. This is different." Stefan declared and downed his whisky straight, without so much as a wince, "Why did you ask me to intervene with your blood test?"

"I…I thought I could trust you. I was lying for Elena, to cover her little road trip. You know that." I uttered meekly. Wow, self, that couldn't have been any less convincing, "How'd you do it?"

"I compelled the lab tech not to test, to forge the report, elevate some adrenaline and whatnot." Stefan explained as he swayed. I wanted to probe him further about my condition, but there was no way of doing so without giving it away. He asked, "Why did you come save me? You knew the danger, you're not stupid."

I stared blankly at him and then averted my eyes when he stared me down. He repeated, "I asked you a question."

"You helped me, I helped you." I uttered back, dismissively.

"Wow. And you say Elena is cagey and frustrating to talk to." Stefan scoffed.

"Stefan…Vicki bit me…and she was….am I-"

Stefan huffed, "You're not. I don't know what the hell you are, but you're not a vampire. That's not how it works. I need another drink."

"Do you?" I asked, sarcastically.

"Yes, Rosanna. Given my heightened senses, and intense cravings, yes, I do need a drink to take the edge off." Stefan scorned back at me, "I can smell your blood from here, and it is taking everything in me not to rip open your veins. I can hear your heart beat thumping in my ears. I know when you're lying to me. Remember that for our next conversation."

I'd never seen him this angsty, and rude before. He was like a completely different person.

 **21:14 – Lockwood Manor**

"You look really beautiful." Tyler whispered in my ear.

I jumped at his breath dancing along my bare neck. I turned, reluctantly, and took him in. Ah, another drunken buffoon to lighten up my party experience.

"And you…smell super bourbon-y." I whispered back and handed him over my glass of water. Was there some kind of midday binge I missed out on today?

"So, it's your turn to take care of me?" He scoffed and accepted the glass, taking a hearty swig and finishing off my drink.

A small smile flinched, and I asked, "Again? Are you okay?"

"I don't deserve to miss Vicki." Tyler drawled painfully, "She…Man, I was such a dick to her, and I can't even make any of it right. I don't deserve to have peace."

"Ty-" I rasped.

"Phew." Tyler huffed out, and his eyes glistened, "I'm sorry. Bourbon…is doing all the talking for me tonight."

"Tyler. Hey." I rasped and took his face in my hands. He was in such pain. Of course, he was. I should've sought him out sooner.

"Don't, Rosie." Tyler sighed and took my hands into his, holding on tightly as he uttered, "Not worth it." He kissed me gently on the forehead and sauntered off.

 **22:02 – Lockwood Manor**

"I'm gonna get a drink." I said to Freddie and Natalie, and pushed my way through the crowd to the bar. Some other poor soul caught my eye.

"Whoa! I guess I'm on drunk mess patrol tonight." I sighed, watching Matt stumble into a plant and apologise profusely to it.

"Rosie!" Matt grinned wildly and staggered over to me, throwing his arms around me.

"Hey. Matt. Wow. Hi." I scoffed at the overwhelming liquor smell, "Let's head outside a second, huh? Air. Let's get some of that."

Matt nodded and slung his arm over my shoulders. He chuckled, "That sounds great. Air. I need some air. Where have you been, kid? I was dancing with Elena earlier, but I don't know where she went. Even Stefan was dancing. Weird, right? Is it weird that I'm having a good night? Am I like, even allowed to?"

"Of course, you are. Yes. We should definitely get some of that air, Matt." I groaned under his weight.

I froze.

"Oh, my god." I uttered, as I caught sight of them. Matt's mom, Kelly, was making out with…Tyler. Matt caught a second wind. He rose from my hold and stormed up to them. I called out his name and tried to hold him back, but it was futile.

"What the hell are you doing, man?" Matt barked in Tyler's face as he shoved him off.

"MATT!" Mrs Donovan screamed.

"MOM!" Matt barked back at her.

"Whoa. Dude. Calm down." Tyler slurred, and spread his hands out. Matt saw red and smacked Tyler square in the jaw. Tyler retaliated.

"MATT! NO!" Mrs Donovan screamed and staggered back, her hands up to her face, shaking. She tried to intervene and got pushed back into a table, sending it flying.

"STOP IT! TYLER! STOP IT! You're hurting him!" I screamed and struggled against him and got elbowed in the ribs. There was no stopping them.

"Stop! Hey! Get back." Mr Saltzman barked. He pushed me back and yanked Tyler off Matt, "TYLER STOP! What the hell is that?! What was that?"

"I'll take it from here." Mayor Lockwood declared. He brushed Mr Saltzman away, examined his son and asked, "You hurt? Ok. Go get cleaned up. Thank you for your help. Everything's fine. Everybody get back to the party. Come back to the party."

"Are you okay?" I asked Matt as I helped him up into a seat and perched beside him, grabbing fancy napkins to stem the bleeding.

"Where is she?" Matt groaned. I glanced around, his mother was nowhere to be seen.

"I don't know. Come on, put your head up." I whispered to Matt.

"Rosanna." Mayor Lockwood spoke quietly to me, "Tyler is going to get cleaned up, follow me."

I glared up at the man and uttered, "That's no concern of mine."

Mayor Lockwood's eyebrow peaked and he stormed after his son.

"Where did she go?" Matt groaned as I dealt with his cuts. One of the staff had brought me the first aid kit from the kitchens.

"I'll see to you, then I'll make sure she gets home alright, okay? Just don't worry. Hold this for me?" I whispered to him.

"You sure know what you're doing, kid." Matt slurred and leant his head against my shoulder, as I tended to the cuts on his knuckles. I'd played doctor with my dad and Jeremy all the time, my dad took it seriously sometimes, taught us a few things.

"Stay awake, Matt." I uttered, "I can't carry you to the taxi."


	18. Give and Take

**16:50 – Lockwood Manor – Miss Mystic Falls Pageant**

"Little Gilbert." Damon greeted me as I stepped out onto the veranda, with a glass of champagne.

I glared at him, suspiciously, before accepting the glass. He suggested, loudly, that we have a stroll around the ornamental garden whilst we wait for the proceedings to begin; far too loudly to decline.

"We haven't had a chance to chat." Damon declared.

"Funny that." I uttered and took a long sip of champagne.

"So, what's your deal?" Damon asked, plainly.

"Excuse me?" I uttered.

"Your deal?" Damon repeated, with little charm, "Come on. You know our secret; cough up yours. You can't be compelled. You've super-charged Stefan-"

"Damon, we are not friends." I uttered, and stopped in my tracks, "We are barely acquaintances. So, why on earth would you think for one second that-"

"I'm worried about my brother." Damon declared, plainly.

"Why?" I asked.

Damon glanced around and sighed harshly. He wasn't one for civility, and was clearly frustrated that he couldn't just compel me to answer him. There needed to be a little give and take here; not his forte.

"He's drinking human blood and lying to Elena about it. She believes he can do no wrong so of course, she's eating it up. He should've been learning how to control himself all this time, instead of resisting it, now the desire is controlling him." Damon informed me, his wild eyes burrowing into me, "And apparently you kick-started this side-show, so you need to tell me what I'm dealing with."

"You should tell Elena. If he's on the verge of snapping she needs to know. Look, I-I want to help Stefan." I uttered, trying my best to keep my face pleasant to onlookers and not desperately worried, "But I don't know-"

"Little Gilbert, I'm not renowned for my patience." Damon sighed.

"I heal." I uttered, "Quicker than I logically should. I fell off the bleachers the other day and I snapped my leg back into place and just walked it off, like it was nothing. When Vicki tore into me, I healed that night. I heal really quickly; that's all I know."

"Huh." Damon huffed.

"Okay, do you know why? Is this a thing? What is it?" I asked.

"Weird." Damon uttered and sauntered off.

Enlightening, I thought to myself. Thank you for your insight, Damon. Super helpful.

 **17:35 - Lockwood Manor - Miss Mystic Falls Pageant**

"Hey, Jer." I uttered and approached my brother who was searching around for someone.

"Hey." Jeremy smiled and embraced me, "I feel like I haven't seen you in ages."

"I uh, I got you something." I smiled and pinned a midnight-blue flower to his suit, "I thought it'd be kind of cute, to support her, you know?"

I had a matching blue flower in my hair, and was wearing a long flowing navy chiffon dress.

Jeremy laughed, "Yeah. No, that's…really nice of you."

"Surprising, huh." I scoffed.

"Ro…" Jeremy sighed and dropped his shoulders, "I'm sorry I was such an ass to you…"

"Jer, it's fine. Don't worry." I declared and shook my head, "We've all had a time of it lately…when I say lately, I don't think I remember not having a time of it…"

"No, it's not fine." Jeremy sighed, "I guess I was jealous that you were so together."

"I wasn't. And I'm not." I uttered quietly.

"Ro. What do you-" Jeremy asked but was cut off as I caught sight of Tyler making his way towards me. I excused myself immediately and walked away.

"Rosie." Tyler sighed heartily as I stormed away from him.

"Dude." Jeremy uttered and placed himself between us so that I could make a clear getaway. The feeling that my brother and I were back on track was overwhelming, it dwarfed every other emotion I was drowning in. I didn't need to tell Jeremy the full story, he just knew when to step in. It meant a lot.

 **18:30 – Lockwood Manor – Miss Mystic Falls Pageant**

Damon and Elena were dancing the Mystic Court Waltz together; Stefan was nowhere to be seen. It didn't bode well for our earlier conversation. Jenna exchanged a confused look with me from across the courtyard; I shrugged back. I was parted from my family during my efforts to avoid Tyler amongst the crowd, successful efforts I might add. I'd vehemently managed to avoid any further contact.

"That's a beautiful dress." Someone uttered.

I turned a little to take in the beautiful man beside me; he must've towered at least another foot above me; his auburn hair was swept back into an immovable tousled quiff; his eyes, piercing directly into mine, were a brilliant captivating green. He was, unique. I glanced over my other shoulder, and realised he'd complimented me. I uttered, "Oh. Thank you, uh?"

"Ignatius." He declared and extended his hand.

"Rosanna." I replied and shook his hand.

"I rather think red or orange would suit you better." He rasped, and looked me up and down. I retracted my hand and nodded, clearing my throat.

"Okay." I uttered quietly, and returned to watching the dance, awkwardly. He must have been in his early twenties, maybe late? I didn't chance another look at the man, but something about him looked familiar...

"How're you enjoying it?" He rasped.

"I'm sorry?" I asked hesitantly. What did he mean? The pageant? It's a little dull, to be quite frank.

"You'll realise your full potential soon enough. So, play around a little. It only gets better." He rasped and bid me adieu. I wrapped my arms around my waist instinctively and stepped back a little. What the-

 **08:14 – The Salvatore House**

"Is Stefan here?" I asked as Damon's head appeared around his front door.

"Technically." Damon smirked.

"Can I come in?" I asked.

" _You_ cannot. Stefan's in detox. You can't see him."

"What do you mean he's in detox?" I asked and stepped forward, preventing him from slamming the door in my face.

"We can't have him running around chewing on people whilst the town's out looking for vampires." Damon scoffed and opened the door slightly, "We especially can't have super-charged Stefan on the loose. Why are you here?"

"I-uh, I wanted to ask Stefan something." I uttered quietly.

"Shoot." Damon drawled and folded his arms, disinterestedly, "Come on, my dear acquaintance, take a load off."

"Do you…know a guy, goes by the name Ignatius…I don't know his last name." I asked.

"As in the Saint?" Damon replied with a raised eyebrow.

"It's not important. I, uh, I thought I recognised the guy from somewhere." I uttered, "Could you ask Stefan, when he's feeling better?"

"I'm not much of an errand boy. Goodbye, Little Gilbert." Damon smirked and slammed the door in my face.

 **09:25 – Mystic Falls High School – Float Building Day**

My mind was still whirling. The weird encounter with that man at the pageant was all I could think about; he seemed so familiar to me, but I just couldn't place him. I wished I'd had the courage at the time to quiz him, but I was so freaked out, my internal stranger danger alarm was blaring in my ears.

"Mr Saltzman landed me with the history float." Tyler declared, as I flicked through Caroline's elaborate plans for the Miss Mystic Falls Float, not really taking them in; there was a lot of glitter and sparkles stuck to these pages. My mind was too preoccupied at the moment to focus solely on avoiding him. He'd seized the golden opportunity, "It's supposed to be a recreation of the battle of Willow Creek. I don't even know where to start. Probably should have paid more attention in class."

I sauntered away with my copy of Caroline's plans, continuing to ignore him. Everyone was assigned to a float; I figured that Coach Reed was punishing me for quitting cheer. Tyler grabbed my arm and I glared back at him as he scorned, "Ro, are you serious? Let me explain."

"Okay. Shoot." I uttered, and turned to face him. He froze, clearly expecting me to just stomp off again. I had too much on my mind, I was too exhausted to be fuming right now. I folded my arms around the plans and stared back at him, waiting with bated breath.

"I-uh-" Tyler stuttered, "Ro, I don't know what to say-"

"Cool." I uttered and sauntered away.

 **11:05 – Mystic Falls High School – Float Building Day**

"He's getting it from all angles, then." Matt said, dumping a big box of ribbons on the float next to me.

"Do you honestly think this is going to hold?" I asked, with wide eyes, pointing at Caroline's ambitious doodles, "I don't think this support will be strong enough. It's gonna crash down."

Matt just stared back at me, waiting for me to answer him.

"It's gonna crash down on _you_ , Matt." I repeated myself, "Mid-elegant wave, or whatever it is you're doing up there."

Matt continued to wait.

"You're not seriously having his back right now?" I uttered.

"No." Matt said, shaking his head, "He's a dick, and he deserves it. But, my mom, the gem that she is, she's not exactly innocent in this."

"They both made their choice." I uttered, plainly, and handed him Caroline's plans, "Can you help me work miracles please?"

Matt paused and uttered, "I'm sorry for the part she played." before taking the plans from me, and leaning against the float as he surveyed them.

I appreciated the gesture, I did, but I really wanted to focus on building Caroline's dream today. I didn't want to think about how my heart was breaking into tiny pieces, how I felt hurt, betrayed, unbelievably stupid, and super embarrassed that I trusted that guy. No. Not today.

 **21:05 – Gilbert House**

Jeremy and Elena were really getting into it. He knew. He'd found out about the vampires. Anna…his girlfriend was a vampire. Jeremy slammed the door in Elena's face, she begged him to open up and talk to her.

"Jer." I uttered, entering his room through our shared bathroom, "It's a lot. I know. But she's only trying to protect us. Her heart was in the right place. Don't shut her out. Talk to her."

"You knew?" He asked. His question sounded tired, it didn't sound mad.

"Kind of recently, but yes, I know." I uttered back, "So, cut her some slack, she's not the only one who held back."

"Held back? That's what you think she did? Held back?" Jeremy scoffed.

"Jeremy!" Elena pleaded and banged on his door, "There's things you have to know!"

Jeremy scoffed and swung the door open, "Thanks, but I'm pretty sure that your journal covered it."

"You read my journal?" Elena stuttered.

"Save me the speech about invasion of privacy, because I read a section about Damon erasing my memory, about what happened to Vicki." Jeremy scorned.

"What? What do you mean?" I uttered.

"Jeremy, please, you don't understand." Elena pleaded.

"Elena?" I asked.

"Damon turned Vicki for no reason." Jeremy declared, "Stefan killed her. Elena got Damon to erase my memory!"

"Elena…" I huffed out. Shit. She'd lied to me. Again. That conversation I had overheard suddenly made perfect sense; Damon wanted to do the same thing to me, until Stefan assured him I was asleep, I hadn't heard anything...maybe that would have been a blessing in disguise, I wouldn't have remembered Tyler coming into my room that night. Shit...had Stefan heard that?

"The night that Vicki died, it was like mom and dad died all over again." Elena wailed, "It was all over your face. And it hurt so much to see you like that again, I just wanted to take away your pain. I'm so sorry!"

"Just get out." Jeremy scorned.

"No, Jeremy-" Elena pleaded.

"Elena! Just get out, please." Jeremy groaned.

"Come on." I uttered, and ushered Elena out of the door for now. He needed space.


	19. Halfway Heaven

**13:05 – Mystic Falls Plaza – Parade Starting Line**

"Rosanna! Honey! The National Champions are leading the parade!" Mrs Lockwood called out, very loudly. I cringed and nodded, sauntering up further down the line. Natalie waved me over to the team.

"Hey." Tyler uttered, but I kept on walking, "Come on, Ro."

"I have to get in line." I uttered.

"You're seriously still doing this?" Tyler sighed.

"I…I have nothing to say to you. And you evidently have nothing to say to me. So let's just leave it at that." I shrugged.

"Hey." Tyler uttered and held my hand, pulling me back to face him, "I messed up. I was sad. And drunk. And so unbelievably stupid and I self-destructed. And I'm not looking for you to tell me it's okay. Because it's not. And I know it's not gonna be, like it was before. Whatever that was before. I liked what it was before."

"You made out with Matt's _mom_ , Tyler." I said curtly, "You...if I meant even the slightest little _something_ to you, you wouldn't have done that."

"You did! You do." Tyler implored.

"No." I scoffed, "No. I don't. You're just bummed out that everyone's pissed off at you! And you just think that I'm the easiest target to get to like you again!"

"Ro, that's not-"

"NO. Tyler." I hissed back at him, "I don't care. This was too big of a damn deal for me, and I feel stupid and shitty enough as it is for trusting you so no, I'm not gonna make this okay for you."

He bit his cheek, as I turned away to join my team up at the front.

"What was that about?" Natalie asked, with genuine concern at my fallen face.

"We...slept together." I uttered matter-of-factly, whilst pulling my hair back into a high pony, "And then Vicki died, and he made out with Matt's mom."

Natalie was staring back at me, in complete bemusement, as I retold my sorry tale. She dragged me over to one of the park benches as she saw I was about to erupt.

"So...I don't really know what that was all about, Natalie, I don't know what to tell you in regards to...what the hell that was. I do know, that it is exhausting, being hurt and pissed off all the time, and he's _everywhere_." I uttered and struggled to tie my ribbon neatly with shaking hands, "Just as I start to forget about it, there he is! I just wanna punch him in the face, every time he reappears in my periphery, it's like this overwhelming, WOW, you fucking suck feeling, spiced up with a little WOW, I fucking suck for even thinking for one second that this would go another way. And I also, funnily enough, um, want to run up to him and tell him all about it, because he's the person I started telling stuff to, before he stabbed me repeatedly right here, right in the heart, but I can't-"

"-because he...fucking sucks. Here." Natalie finished of my sentiment, and took over from me, "That was a lot of confusing information. Man, I can't believe you cashed in your V-card before me."

"Who even says that?"

"I do. I'm bringing it back. Okay, I know you're drowning in a beautiful mixture of all of the emotions, but Tyler? Really?!" Natalie whispered.

"Yeah. Not my finest hour." I uttered.

"We are going to smile and wave, and then we are gonna talk the crap out of this."

 **19:58 – Mystic Falls Founder's Day Fireworks**

"And we have the Founders to thank for that. I'd like to dedicate this evening's firework display to their legacy!" Mayor Lockwood introduced the evening's festivities, "Enjoy the show!"

Mayor Lockwood rapidly disappeared from the stage with his wife, and the crowd's attention was drawn to the sky. The display was beautiful.

"Whoa!" Freddie chuckled, "Damn they're loud!"

"Has anyone seen Adam?" Natalie asked as she pushed through the crowd up to us, "Not that I care, I'm just checking he's like…staying really far away from me, as requested!"

"You're obsessed." I laughed at her eyes darting across the crowd. She wasn't even trying to hide it anymore.

An otherworldly sharp screech penetrated my ears. My entire body tensed; I couldn't...I couldn't do anything but clutch the sides of my head, desperately trying to cover my ears and block it out. It felt as though I'd been shot in the head; and the noise was reverberating out of the searing pain. I screamed as I fell to the ground, helplessly. It wouldn't stop. It wouldn't relent. Nothing I did would stop it.

"AHHHHHH!" I screamed out, "MY HEAD! MAKE IT STOP!"

 _"ROSIE?!" Natalie screamed._

 _"ROSANNA!"_

 _"Someone help! SIR?! Help us, our friend!"_

 _"What are you doing?! Where are you taking her?!"_

 _"ROSIE?!"_

 _"What's wrong with her?!"_

 **20:15 – Dr Grayson Gilbert's Office -** **Basement**

 _Cough. Cough! No. Please. No. Help me._

I heard them all groaning, coughing, and spluttering. I heard them...dying.

I heard Damon's grumblings.

"DAMON?" I cried out.

"Jesus, kid?!"

"Damon!" I huffed out before passing out from the smoke.

* * *

My eyes blinked repeatedly. It was blinding.

"Urgh…god." I groaned and struggled to rise.

"Close." He said, his voice echoing into the vacant abyss.

I disregarded his offer to help me rise and slowly struggled on my own to find my feet. Everything hurt; if he was about to tell me I was hit by a tanker truck, and this was the afterlife...all signs pointed to that being true.

"You're a good kid." He declared as my eyes adjusted to the radiating light surrounding us, "I'm sorry. I understand. Woe is you, but in the end, why should it be someone else over you? Why should it not be you?"

"Are you here for the long haul?" I uttered, caressing my now radiating chest, "I was lead to believe death was peaceful."

"I've seen your heart." He declared, "What you're capable of. What you've already been through. You've done this before. I'm sorry I had to speed along your next death, but you need to be strong enough, for what's coming."

"Excuse me? I'm dead?!" I coughed and surveyed the immediate area. There was nothing here. Nothing but me, some sparkly mist, and this random creepy man. Was he God? God, heaven sucks. Was this some sort of half-way heaven? A work in progress? A heaven for kinda decent, kinda sucky, but not Hell-type sucky people.

"Don't be afraid." He declared, "It's going to be rough, it must be, but you will survive, you will rise again, and again. That is your burden. And in 1000 years of service you will get to pass it on, and should you wish to, pass on."

"Who the hell are you?" I uttered plainly.

"We've met." He stated, with a slight squint in his eye. Yes. We have. But I wasn't asking for his name.

"Who _are_ you?!" I scorned.

"The question is a little too deep for the time we have left. Ignatius Gilbert: the incumbent." He declared and extended his hand.

"You see, you're saying a lot of words, but you're not actually saying anything remotely useful." I scorned up at the man, disregarding his offer.

"Once in every 10 generations." He reminisced, flicking his auburn hair back as he spoke, "Generations of pain; that's what guarding the elements looks like. Just be glad you don't have to drown every time, like Salacia. That's a sore deal."

"I don't understand." I groaned, "You're making no sense!"

"There are certainties. You have to burn. Cleanse. Return to the ashes, to the earth from whence you came; it's the only way to become stronger. Regular deaths are just a party trick. I'm only just making sense of it, as the last grains of sand filter down. My only hope is you don't repeat my mistakes."

The sparkly clouds between us...at least I thought they were clouds, it could've been a sick smoke machine he'd rigged up somewhere, they dissipated and we were standing in the street, outside of Dad's office. Thick black smoke was billowing from the building. Bonnie was chanting some gibberish furiously.

"Oh my god!" Bonnie screamed and staggered back, overwhelmed by whatever had just taken over her body.

Elena cried out as Stefan threw Damon onto his knees; they were both violently coughing and spluttering. I called out Elena's name, but she couldn't hear me.

"…Lena." Stefan huffed out as he embraced her tightly. He coughed and rasped, "I'm sorry, the rafters…we were too late."

"Wait, what?!" Elena cried out, "What do you mean?"

"She's in there." Damon coughed and wheezed from the ground, "Little Gilbert. They got her."

"No." I groaned and staggered forward, "Elena! I'm right here!"

Elena was fiercely held back by Stefan as she violently fought against him, intent on running head first into the flames. Bonnie broke down into sobs, she screamed out that she had killed me, she babbled over and over again, she was the reason, she had killed me. I shook my head and consoled Bonnie but I just slipped through her like I was...I was made of mist. I was the sparkly mist.

Damon groaned with a lump in his throat that I was gone. He'd watched me burn. He was sorry.

"Shut up, Damon! I'm not dead!" I screamed in Elena's face as Stefan consoled her, "ELENA! I'm here! STOP! Ste-Stefan, look at me!"

"One always wonders what it would be like: a fly on the wall of your own funeral." Ignatius uttered from behind me, "You're loved, Rosanna. Count your blessings amongst your burdens."

I scoffed and turned to the man, tears lining my eyes.

"Take rest." He suggested, "You shan't again."


	20. From The Ashes

**00:00 – The Ashes**

It felt like an entire building had collapsed on me. As I shuffled and struggled to move through the dust and debris it became quite apparent…that was the case. My body ached; I could barely force my limbs to obey my will. My mind…was at peace; numb; silent.

I arose from the ashes of my father's burned-down building; I was completely naked.

 **00:44 – Gilbert House**

"Did she say what she wanted?" Damon grumbled.

"No." Stefan rasped.

"Woman certainly knows how to make an entrance." Damon scorned.

I turned the handle of the front door and pushed it open tentatively, as the brothers continued to gripe at each other. They didn't hear me enter over their squabble. Damon and Stefan stormed into the hallway and both froze at the sight; I suppose seeing Elena's kid sister standing at the front door in a garbage bag would be rather startling.

"ELENA?" Stefan barked.

"You. She." Damon huffed out.

"I told Jeremy. I can't lie to him any-OH, MY GOD!" Elena said. Her face crumpled. She almost fell down the stairs. She thundered down and collided with me. I winced at the collision as she cried out, "Rosie! Oh my god. Oh my god! Are you okay?!"

I slipped out of her embrace, painfully, shaking my head. I huffed out, "I…"

"I saw you, die, Little Gilbert!" Damon scorned as he stormed up to us. He glanced back and forth between Elena and me, awaiting the punchline.

"Rosanna, I thought you were dead, what the hell happened to you?!" Elena uttered through the tears.

"You, uh…you tell me." I uttered and staggered past them, up the stairs.

 **01:30 – Gilbert House**

I sat on the edge of my bed, hair dripping, dressed in fresh, clean pyjamas, just staring at the floor. I'd already ran over the night's events a couple of times on the walk home. I didn't need to do it again; I wasn't missing anything, I wasn't going to change anything by reliving it one more time. The stillness in my mind…it was new. I liked it. I knew I should be scared, I should be an uncontrollable snotty mess, panicking beyond all comprehension…but no. I was still. I'd done this before. Stefan tapped lightly on the door frame and leant against it, coolly.

"Hey." He rasped.

I glanced over at him and blinked a tear back, "Hey."

"Are you okay?" He asked.

I shook my head once, slowly.

"Physically?" He asked.

"I think so." I uttered, quietly.

"Were you…were you really in that basement?" He asked, pushing his hands into his pockets and sauntering into my room, reading that I wasn't quite as cold with him.

I nodded once. I cleared my throat and said, "Uh, yeah, along with a bunch of vampires. Mayor Lockwood, he…uh, he was dead. I-I watched them all…"

"You…" Stefan uttered.

I ran my shaky hands through my hair and struggled to breathe. Stefan settled next to me and pulled me into an embrace, pulling me into his chest as I shook. He uttered, "Hey. Hey, it's okay. You're home. You're safe now."

"He said I'd done this before." I uttered, as I pulled away from his chest, and rose to my feet.

"Who? Who said that?"

"You were there." I uttered.

"Yes. I came for Damon. He said you were already gone." Stefan said.

"No. Not tonight." I uttered, "Wickery Bridge."

Stefan merely blinked back at me and shot his gaze away, struggling to find the words to say.

"It's clear now. It's like I'm watching it in a movie or something. You pulled Elena out of the water first. You-you left me to struggle with my mom's seat-belt." I said, calmly, "I died. I felt it. I should've died too. The sheer force we…we went into the water, you only had time to save one. My dad forced your hand. He made you take Elena."

"Yes." Stefan rasped, with a sad soulful expression.

"He knew." I uttered quietly, "I think he knew I'd be alright."

"How?"

"Does she know?" I asked.

Stefan nodded his head, solemnly, and uttered, "She knows I was there."

"I'd like to be alone now." I uttered.

"You _were_ dead." Stefan explained, "I called an ambulance, for Elena, and later when we met again I thought you were some kind of medical miracle."

"You said you were here for me, that you'd help me." I uttered quietly.

"Yes. I am."

"Hiding stuff doesn't help me."

He paused. He nodded pensively and saw himself out, granting the privacy I desired.

 **13:01 - Mayor Lockwood's Wake – Lockwood Manor**

"Should you be here?" Elena whispered to me, harshly, as we got out of the car, "I don't even know if you should, you won't tell me what happened."

"Let it go. I'm fine." I whispered back.

"I came clean with you, I told you everything I knew, but this is a two-way street. I need you to be honest with me as well." Elena hissed.

"Elena, can you even hear yourself?" I stopped in my tracks and scoffed at her, "You twisted the truth to make yourself look better. You were not honest with me. You messed with Jeremy's memory. You are the _last person_ that deserves honesty. Leave me alone."

I sauntered up to walk beside Jeremy. There wasn't animosity in my tone, it was more disbelief. Elena operated consistently in this shades-of-grey logic, where she fixated so strongly on one ideal and warped all of her actions around it. If she protected us, the means didn't matter. I was more of a picker. I took things one at a time and picked them apart, and I couldn't find any redemption in what she'd done to Jeremy.

"Looks like the whole town has turned out." Jenna noted at the crowded estate.

"Yeah, well, he is-he was the mayor." Elena uttered.

"Why don't they save it for the funeral?" Jeremy asked.

"It is what people do. The Lockwoods were here for us when we went through this. It'll be quick. We'll drop off the food and pay our respects and go." Jenna decided.

"In and out? Sounds like a plan." Jeremy scoffed.

"You guys go ahead. I'll, um, I'll be right there, okay?" Elena uttered and sauntered away towards Damon.

I rolled my eyes and followed my family inside.

 **13:30 – Lockwood Manor – Veranda**

"Are you alright?" Tyler asked, settling beside me.

I was leant against his porch railing, sipping on a glass of fruit punch, people watching.

"Hey." I sighed and propped the glass down to embrace him tightly, "I should be the one asking you that."

Tyler pulled away from our long embrace, attempting to hide the puzzled look on his face. The last time we spoke, well, it wasn't exactly civil.

"I'm getting there." Tyler rasped and glanced over me, back to the grounds, searching around for what had gripped my attention. He said, "You look like you're a million miles away."

I exhaled slowly and nodded, "Yeah, uh, it's been a rough…I don't know how long actually, I've forgotten what it was like when times were smooth. I'm sorry about your dad."

"Sorry is starting to not sound like a word anymore, but thanks." He noted with a small smile.

"I heard you uh, you-" I uttered quietly.

"Crashed a car, and put Caroline in the hospital?" Tyler uttered.

"Elena said she was recovering. She'll be okay." I replied quickly.

"Yeah. Luckily."

"Tyler. It was an accident."

"You wanna go somewhere?" Tyler asked.

I sighed and nodded, "If you can."

"Yeah. I know a place." He declared and gestured to follow him.

 **13:40 – Lockwood Estate Grounds**

"I can't believe you still have this." I scoffed as we crawled inside his tree-house, hidden down at the bottom of the estate, on the border of the woodland. Matt and Tyler had spent an entire summer building this place.

"You're kidding right? We all need somewhere to run to." He scoffed and cleaned up a bit, throwing magazines and sleeping bags over and clearing a space for me. I nestled beside him and accepted the ice-cold beer from his mini fridge.

"Just like old times." I uttered, with a small smile, and noted, "People are going to miss you up at the house. Your mom must need you."

"You gonna tell me what's on your mind?" Tyler asked, completely by-passing my point, he mocked, "No? It's nothing. Come on, Ro, take a load off. Nah. Small talk. Small talk. And proceed."

I scoffed at his performance and took a long sip of my beer as I thought up a response.

"I…I think everything just…came back, with, you know, all of this. And I had this really visceral dream. It wigged me out." I uttered, half-heartedly.

"Okay. You know you can tell me stuff, stupid stuff, right?"

"Right back at you. I have experience in this particular line of sadness." I scoffed.

"Yeah. We're in a pretty shitty club, huh." Tyler sighed, "Ro, I'm sorry…about everything before-"

"Hey." I uttered, shaking my head, and repeating his earlier sentiment, "We've got enough of those. It's okay. It's done."

I wasn't angry anymore. Dying and being surrounded by death hadn't given me some new-found appreciation for the fragility of life, or the pettiness of our problems. No. Death and I had this routine down, it wasn't that. It was the stillness. I was new. I was okay. I wanted to explain that to him in that moment, but I still hadn't figured it all out in my head. I died. And I'm okay. So, let's be friends again?

 **22:05 – Gilbert House**

"Hey." Jeremy greeted me as I entered his room and slammed the door behind me, "Whoa. Where have you been?"

"Walking. I was walking." I uttered and began pacing his room.

"I didn't see you leave after the Lockwood's thing-"

"I was trapped in that burning building, Jer." I uttered to my brother, plainly, "I saw all of those vampires burn and perish. I saw Tyler's dad get his neck snapped, and I just shot the shit with Tyler for a few hours, like that image wasn't plastered in my brain the entire time. I saw Uncle John stab Anna in the heart, as she begged for her life."

"Rosie-" Jeremy huffed out, his eyes filled with pain at the last point.

"No. I died, Jeremy! I can still feel it, every time I close my eyes! I-I burned! My skin. My…I was there! And the next thing I know I'm crawling out of the ashes, I'm not burned, I'M FINE!" I cried out, "But I'm not just fine! I'm…better. And I'm scared at how not scared I am!"

"Ro-"

"What is that about?!" I laughed.

Jeremy embraced me tightly, suppressing my flailing limbs for a moment.

"Hang on…" He scorned, and surveyed my hands.

"What are you doing?" I asked, retracting one to wipe my eyes.

"You didn't have a ring…" He said. He squinted his eyes and shook his head, "I don't get it."

"You don't get it?!"

"Uncle John gave me this ring, it's a family heirloom, if I die at the hands of something supernatural, then I…uh, come back." Jeremy explained.

"No ring." I uttered, "I died in a fire, the fire wasn't supernatural?"

"We should ask Bonnie…maybe she'll know something?"

"Why would Bonnie know? God, is she a vampire too?"

"No, she's a witch…"

I brushed my hands through my hair and sighed. That explained the gibberish chanting from my induction with Ignatius.

"Yeah. It's a lot." Jeremy sighed, and his ears peaked to what sounded like Elena and Damon fighting next door.

"Did you come across a guy named Ignatius in those musty old journals?" I asked.

"I-hmm...no, it doesn't ring a bell but I've only read three so far, there's a whole bunch of them, even more up at the lake house." Jeremy explained but could no longer ignore the ruckus. We were trying to cause our own ruckus here.

"Elena, what's going on in here?" Jeremy asked, as we both took up stance in her room. Damon was right up in Elena's face, and she looked particularly frazzled.

"Nothing. It's okay, just go back to bed." Elena barked back.

"No, it's not okay, Elena." Damon uttered, monotonously, and the hairs on my arms prickled. He shot a glance at Jeremy and said, "He wants to be a vampire."

"No! DAMON! STOP IT!" Elena screamed.

"You want to shut out the pain?" Damon scorned into Jeremy's face, slamming him up against the wall, "It's the easiest thing in the world. The part of you that cares, it just goes away! All you have to do is flip the switch and SNAP!"

"DAMON! NO!" Elena screamed.

Something deep within my very core erupted as his body fell to the ground. I slammed a fiery fist into Damon's face; I let out this guttural scream, I couldn't recreate it now, it just erupted. He slammed backwards through the bannister at such force, smacking a huge dent into the wall behind it; he roared out, clasping at the burn on his face as he staggered back up the staircase. Damon's face shook and was contorted into its vampiric form. He growled back harshly, and collided with me. We fought fiercely for only a moment more. He was thrown back abruptly. Stefan roared out over him. Damon was gone.

Elena was sobbing on her bedroom floor, clasping on to our brother's dead body. Stefan asked if I was alright. I nodded curtly, brushing my arm, I'd landed on it a little funny, that's all. He stood over Elena and took in the sight of his broken girlfriend.

"He saw the ring, that's why he did it, he knew." Stefan rasped.

"He didn't see it." Elena wailed.

"It's Katherine." Stefan offered, "She got under his skin. She undid everything good about him."

"Stefan, there's nothing good about him anymore. He's decided what he wants. He doesn't want to feel he just wants to be hated. It's just easier that way. He got his wish. I hate him, Stefan." Elena wailed.

"I know." Stefan uttered and rubbed her back.

Jeremy gasped for air suddenly, startling us all.

"Is he okay?" Elena cried, "Stefan, is he okay?"

"He's okay." Stefan nodded.

"Jeremy?" I uttered.

"Damon. Damon killed me." Jeremy coughed.


	21. Tell Me More

**14:11 – Mystic Falls High School – Charity Carnival**

"Hey! The dance team are meeting on the front lawn for a last-minute rehearsal. They've been looking for you. Where's your costume?" Elena asked, interrupting my conversation with Stefan.

He'd assured me he'd look into my freakish fire punching abilities, ask around his circle discretely, and I was going to follow up the lead on the journals Jeremy had provided. Stefan implored me to not use my powers, if I could help it, to not attract any unwelcome attention, at least until they knew a little more. It made sense. I simply raised the bag beside me in response to my sister's question.

"The Pink Ladies need their Sandy." Stefan rasped, attempting to continue the conversation between us all, and cut into the glares being exchanged.

"How long are you going to ice me out? You know what I was doing, and all I have ever done…I was just trying to protect you both from all of this. And you're not protecting me from anything, you're punishing me! And I need to know what's going on with you so that I can keep you safe!" Elena asked, standing sassily with her clipboard in hand.

"Tell me more, tell me more…" Stefan rasped.

"Right, because you did such a great job keeping Jeremy safe. You're the one who invited Damon into our lives." I scoffed and sauntered away.

Stefan made a motion to speak but Elena cut him off and mirrored my snotty departure.

"You know, you are kind of cutting into my routine, kid." Jeremy uttered as he caught up with me, clearly overhearing my blowout with Elena.

"You're three minutes older than me." I uttered back.

"Best three minutes of my life." Jeremy scoffed and read the response, opting for a different tone. "I know since I'm the one who died…most recently, and all, I should be super pissed, but I think you've got that one covered for the both of us."

"I'm not…okay, yeah I'm pissed…but, without that stupid ring, you'd be dead."

"Valid point, yeah."

"But this…I don't know, it's like inside my chest, it was fine, and now I'm so damn mad."

"You think this is a…fire punch thing?" Jeremy asked.

"I don't know, I just need time to process this! I haven't even done that yet, I can't keep going over it with everyone and getting badgered with a million questions, that I can't even answer if I wanted to!" I whined.

"Hey. It's alright. Preaching to the choir. Go get your Grease on." Jeremy said and ushered me away with a sympathetic smile.

 **14:49 –** **Mystic Falls High School – Charity Carnival – Main Stage**

"Rosanna!" Bonnie called out and scarpered over to where I was pulling myself into a pink jacket. I glanced around and asked Freddie to give us a minute.

"Warm-ups. Don't be long." He whispered and gave us some privacy.

"Hi." Bonnie uttered simply.

"I'm kind of down to the wire here, Bon." I uttered and glanced around at the dance team, stretching, and preparing for the show.

"Okay." Bonnie uttered, and bit her cheek.

"It's okay." I uttered.

"I just don't even know what to say."

"It's okay. You didn't know. I didn't know. No one knew." I uttered.

"But, I'm the reason you went down!"

"No, I think I was going down anyway-" I sighed, pensively.

"Rosanna!" Coach Hanley barked. She was taking over the Dance Team until Coach Jeffords returned from paternity leave.

"Look, I'm sorry." I uttered, "I've really gotta go."

"We're okay?" Bonnie blurted out.

"We're okay." I nodded.

"I'm going to help, look into it."

"Thank you." I replied and joined the team's preparations.

 **19:24 – Mystic Falls High School – Charity Carnival**

"Well…you look-" Tyler uttered but froze as he looked me up at down.

"Electrifying?" I scoffed at the super tight Sandy number from the final act.

"I was gonna say smoking, but that works too." Tyler rasped.

"Uh, did you see the show?" I uttered, blushing at the way his eyes were dancing all over me.

"Yeah, I was with Mason all day but…I caught the end of it. You were amazing." Tyler said.

"Tyler-" I uttered.

Tyler stepped up to me and brushed a hand against my cheek, pulling me into him, his lips met mine. He kissed me, gently at first, waiting for my response. I kissed him back, and he took that as permission to lose himself in the moment. I didn't think about any of it; the heartbreak; the icing out; the burning to death and rising from the ashes; none of it. It just felt really good to be kissing him again.

"Tyler! Come on, man. You gotta defend your title!" Tyler's uncle barked over at him from the arm-wrestling booth. Tyler sighed at the interruption, and called back, "Yeah, yeah."

He glanced down at me and whispered, "I wanna…see you more."

"That's okay with me." I uttered back.

He kissed me once more for good measure and said he'd find me later. I nodded and bit my lip, watching as he sauntered up to the crowd, inviting his next opponent to step forward. He seemed…different, lighter.

"Little Gilbert." Damon grinned maniacally and dragged me around the corner.

"Ow. Damon!" I scorned and yanked my arm out of his grasp harshly.

He glared at where he had held me, and back to where I now stood, in sheer confusion. He scorned, "What's with all the freakishly strong teenagers?!"

"Maybe you're just past your prime." I sneered at him.

Damon snarled and scoffed, "Whatever. Hilarious. Look, here's the deal, you are going to stay away from Tyler Lockwood until I give you the greenlight. Clear? Great." Damon smirked, patted my head, and turned to leave.

"No." I stated plainly and folded my arms in defiance.

"No?" Damon scoffed.

"No."

"What do you mean, no?" He scorned.

"I'm not going to do anything you say."

"Little Gilbert, do not test my patience-" Damon growled.

"Or what?" I laughed, "Last time we tussled you left with your tail between your legs."

"Stefan intervened-" Damon scorned.

"Oh, is that right?" I scoffed and stepped up to him, "Well, Stefan is-"

"Right here." Stefan sighed and stood between us, pushing Damon a little further back. Damon's wild eyes were piercing into mine, waiting for the smallest flicker of movement. Stefan rolled his eyes and turned to me, "We are concerned about Tyler, his dad was affected by the Gilbert device, as were you, but he wasn't a vampire, so we just want to be sure his family isn't-"

"Something nastier." Damon smirked.

"Right. I think I've proven that I can handle myself." I uttered and sauntered away.


	22. Supernatural Search Engine

**08:14 – Gilbert House**

I glanced down at my phone and read the message from Tyler:

 _[23:54] Hey. Sorry I bailed. My uncle needed me for something. I'll call you tomorrow? X_

I paused for a moment, before deleting the message. I was not going to get sucked back into this. I refused to fall for this again. I wasn't this girl. Elena appeared, and chapped on my door frame before I could dwell on it any longer.

"Hey, are you coming?" Elena asked. Stefan was lurking just behind her. She responded to my silence by offering up, "I'd really like you to come with us."

"Elena! Ric's here." Jenna called up from downstairs.

Did I want to spend the day silently seething next to my sister and enduring Damon's special brand of asshole humour? I dropped my shoulders and said, "You just want a buffer between you and Damon."

"I want you to get answers." Elena shook her head and uttered, "That's what today is about, both of us getting some answers. Even if you don't want to share them with me."

Damon tooted the horn repeatedly from the front of the house. Elena closed her eyes and sighed harshly.

"I'll go." Stefan sighed and sauntered away.

"Elena!" Jenna called again.

"Hold up." I said and brushed passed them both, leading the way out to the car.

 **14:05 – Duke University**

We arrived at the university, and were guided to Isobel's old office by her former research assistant.

"I'll grab the light, feel free to look around. It's fascinating, isn't it?" The assistant smiled and departed.

We cast a cursory glance around the room. It was dusty and filled with creepy artefacts. Unsettling was the word that came to mind, way before interesting.

"Your mom was a hoarder." I muttered under my breath.

"Where did she go?" Damon hummed eventually.

The assistant was taking her sweet time. Elena gasped as she re-emerged with a crossbow. In the blink of an eye, Damon was a shield between the bolt and Elena. He groaned as the arrow pierced his back. Elena was paralysed with shock. Ric slammed the woman into the door, disarming her with ease.

"Pull it out. I can't reach it. Just pull the damn thing out. It hurts!" Damon groaned.

"Say please." I sang and hovered my hand over the arrow.

"I swear to GOD LITT-AAAAH! That bitch is dead." Damon growled and caressed his back.

"Uh, you're not gonna kill her." I scorned, waving around the arrow to enunciate my point.

"Watch me, Little Gilbert." Damon smirked.

"You touch her, and I swear I will never speak to you again." Elena threatened him.

"Ouch." I scoffed and tossed the arrow aside.

"What makes you think you have any power over me? Cause I took an arrow in the back for you? You are severely overestimating yourself." Damon sang as he threw a lazy arm around Elena.

Elena slapped it away and scorned, "Right. I forgot that I was speaking to a psychotic mind who snaps and kills people impulsively. Fine. Go ahead. Do whatever you want."

"You're trying to manipulate me." Damon gasped sarcastically.

"If by 'manipulate' you mean 'tell the truth', then okay, guilty." Elena scorned at the man, and then sighed at his stand-down, "Ok."

Elena sauntered through to the other room, where Ric had dragged the assailant. I exchanged a look with Damon, rolled my eyes and followed my sister outside.

"Please! Ok. I freaked! Alright, you would have done the same thing! It is not possible! Katherine Pierce cannot be alive. Damon Salvatore died in 1864! Ok. I-I read Isobel's research." Vanessa rattled out.

"Well. Then you should know just how possible this is." Ric rasped.

"I'm Elena Gilbert, Isobel's daughter, and a descendent of Katherine Pierce. And this is Damon Salvatore, who you just shot." Elena explained.

"I'd be extra nice to me right now." Damon smirked.

"Look, we need your help, we need to see all of Isobel's research, anything related to Mystic Falls." Elena implored.

 **15:14 – Duke University**

Vanessa unearthed the curse of the sun and the moon, an Aztec legend of a Shaman restricting werewolves to turning only once a month, during a full moon, and restricting vampires to burn in the sun. She explained that vampires were key prey to werewolves, and in turn werewolf bites were fatal. Thus, vampires hunted their predators to near extinction to protect themselves, which explained the relatively low profile of the wolves.

"It's a full moon tonight." Ric interjected, his gaze settling upon Elena, "If you're worried about this Mason Lockwood, if you think he's-"

"I'll call Stefan." Elena nodded and excused herself immediately.

"That's what you think Tyler is? A werewolf?" I asked Damon, expecting some semblance of a straightforward answer.

"Hey, your punches sting like a bitch and you're virtually indestructible, less of the judgey eyes." Damon smirked, and noted my steely expression, elaborating, "It's not out of the realms of possibility."

"Vanessa." I sighed, and sauntered over to the woman, "What do you have on rising from the dead?"

"Like zombies?" Vanessa asked, "Very little. There is no compelling evidence they exist outside of popular culture."

"Ugh, you are the worst at supernatural search engine." Damon groaned at me and grinned, "Try Evolutionary Beings."

"Isobel's research here is restricted to vampirism in Virginia." Vanessa shook her head, "And the myths and legends attached to them. I'm sorry, it sounds like when you're talking about evolution, you want to be looking into bio-chemistry."

"So, this was a colossal waste of time." I muttered to myself.

"Let me take you to the university's library." Vanessa offered, "I have access to all areas, nothing is off-limits."

"That's a very kind offer, but we need to be heading back, soon, it's a long drive." I replied, after accepting Ric's sympathetic nod, "We don't have the time for me to indulge."

"Well, the library material isn't entirely catalogued online. But, it's start, I guess, the log in and passcode for this department is…here." Vanessa offered. I accepted the card and thanked her kindly.

 **15:30 - Duke University Campus - Gas Station**

"What are you...what is it you were looking for, back there?" Ric asked, quietly.

I glanced up at him, and shot my eyes back to the candy selection before he could catch them. Damon and Elena were the only other people in the gas station, and they were too pre-occupied arguing over by the slushie-machine to hear the question. The attendant had his eyes glued to a tiny TV behind the counter, he was way out of earshot, but still. It wasn't the ideal location for talking about this.

"I...wanted to know about something outside of what Damon is." I whispered back.

"You don't have to tell me anything. I get that I'm just your history teacher who hangs out with your aunt and likes her...a lot. And I get why you can't tell her about this stuff." Ric rasped, "But, if she knew, she would do everything she could to help you out, and keep you safe. So, if I could help you find some answers, it takes the edge off of keeping stuff from her, and I would like to try to do that."

I nodded and handed over a crumpled piece of paper I had stuffed into my jeans pocket: my scribbles outlined everything that had happened to me, the fire at my father's office, the forged medical reports, the rapid healing, that trippy dream with Ignatius. Everything.

"That is...everything I have." I uttered, "It's not really much to go on. But, yeah. I have Stefan and Bonnie on the case, asking around their respective circles, but another mind mulling it over would be great, because so far, it's not been a particularly fruitful search."

I took the candy bar from his hand in exchange for the paper and made my way over to disturb the attendant and pay for the snacks.


	23. Merry Band of Misfits

**13:00 – Gilbert House – Jenna's Barbeque**

 **Rosanna** [10:54]: _Hey, are you coming to the BBQ later? X_

 **Tyler** [12:59]: _Hey, sorry, I have to help Mason with something! I'll call you later x_

I hadn't actually seen Tyler since the Carnival, since that kiss, since his declaration that he wanted to hang out more. Was he regretting the rekindling? Was this going to be his default response from now on? _No thanks, my uh…my uncle is incapable of doing anything without me. I could just use my words like a normal person and tell you what's up, but I'm emotionally stunted, and I'll just resort to avoiding you forever._ It was just…weird.

As if on cue, Mason Lockwood tumbled into our house like a caricature frat-boy, and was doing shots with Jenna, reminiscing about the good old days.

"Mase, this is my other niece." Jenna introduced me as I entered the kitchen.

"Rosanna." I smiled and extended my hand.

"Oh yeah, I know." Mason laughed, "Tyler goes on about you so much I feel like I know you already."

I crinkled my brow and stared back at the man…what?! He does what?! Is that why he can't turn up anywhere he says he will? He's spent all day droning on about me, he's had enough me for one day?!

"Huh. What does he have on today?" I asked, completely casually and coolly, masking the rant that was bubbling beneath the surface.

"Uh, I think Carol has him pretty tied up with some fundraiser thing." Mason replied, also applying a casual and cool approach, but doing it so much better than I.

"What a shame." Damon sighed out, with a less than convincing tone.

"I'm gonna take mine to go, if that's alright." I uttered and accepted the first burger from Ric.

"You sure?" Jenna asked.

"Yeah, there's those rehearsals-" I uttered and took a munch.

"GO." Jenna barked and grinned, before explaining to Mason that the school was doing the Hairspray musical again. A raucous trip down memory lane ensued: stage crew was basically detention back then; they knocked a whole can of red paint across one of the back-drops the day before opening and stayed up until 4am trying to fix it. I used the opportunity to slip out quietly.

"I might have something." Ric whispered as I left, "Nothing major, but something."

 **22:14 – Mystic Falls Town Square**

"Little Gilbert. It's awfully late to be roaming the streets of Mystic Falls, unattended." Damon rattled on as he glanced around the area skittishly.

I didn't so much as flinch at his sudden arrival. I'd heard him coming a mile away, from right across the square, that street beside The Grill.

"Thank God I have _you_ here to protect me." I rolled my eyes and continued cycling through the songs on my phone, "I may trip on a rogue piece of trash, or maybe even a twig-" Damon snapped my earphones out with one flick and snatched my full attention. I barked back, "HEY!"

"In case you slept through the latest revelation our merry band of misfits has stumbled upon: there is a werewolf kicking about-"

" _Alleged_ werewolf." I corrected him and rubbed my ears.

"Mason Lockwood? He's a werewolf. It's just your boyfriend that's a grey area."

"He's not my boyfriend."

"Oh no, what happened?" He whined sarcastically, "He shared a juice box with Becky in the canteen?"

"Shut up. And since when are we the Scooby Gang?"

"Come on, I'm walking you home, I need extra brownie points with Jenna." Damon declared and ushered me on.

"I thought you picked some up today, at the BBQ."

"Yeah, after what I just did, I'm going to need extra in the bank."

"What did you do?" I asked monotonously.

"Not your immediate concern."

"Don't you think this is a bit Damon-overkill for one day?"

"No such thing." Damon grinned, "Did you get the starring role in the singalong?"

"I didn't go out for a role. The Dance Team gets guaranteed spots in the-"

Damon let out a loud snore and pretended to jerk himself awake. I glared at him as he chuckled away.

 **11:14 – The Historic Society's Volunteer Day – Riverside Park**

 **Jeremy** [11:12]: _Are you still hung up on Tyler?_

 **Rosanna** [11:12]: _Why?_

 **Jeremy** [11:13]: _Just a heads up._ _He invited these girls back to his. Free house._

 **Rosanna** [11:13]: _He's single. He can do whatever he wants._

 **Jeremy** [11:14]: _So, you'd be cool if I went? I think I can talk to him, find out what he knows._

 **Rosanna** [11:14]: _Sure_. _Be careful x_

My heart dropped into the pit of my stomach as I shoved my phone back into my pocket. Well, there it was. He wasn't reeling from the werewolf revelation, he wasn't enjoying some quality family time; I'd just seen his uncle a moment ago. He was having a party…with a bunch of random girls.

A sudden sound snatched my attention away and almost caused me to drop my paint brush. A splattering of bullets radiated inside my ear drums; it came from further out, somewhere in the woods. It was accompanied by this strange feeling of…I don't know how to describe it. Like a call to arms? I knew immediately that something was terribly wrong, and I needed to move, now. I glanced around and saw no one else react. My gaze met Caroline's tense form, and she nodded, signalling she too had heard it.

"You heard that?" I asked, after making my way over to her and Elena.

"We have to go. Now." Caroline asserted.

"What? What was it?" Elena asked.

"Stefan. And Damon." Caroline uttered and lead the way.

 **11:30 – Riverside Park Woodland**

"What are you doing out here?" Mason Lockwood asked, as he randomly appeared behind us.

"Have you seen Stefan?" Elena asked, still naïve to the fact he wasn't out here to stretch his legs.

"Yeah, Elena, I've seen him. I've seen Damon too." Mason noted, coolly.

"Well? Where are they?" I asked, rapidly losing patience with that Lockwood smirk.

"You don't need me for that. I'll let your friend here sniff them out." Mason scoffed, "Does your mother know what you are? I'm happy to tell her."

Caroline had started to breath heavily and lunged after Mason.

"Don't be stupid!" Mason scorned as he snatched up Elena and held her hostage in a choke hold. He scoffed, "Necks snap easy around here."

"DON'T." I barked at him, feeling a familiar prickling under my skin.

"I can take you." Caroline growled.

"Wanna bet?" Mason laughed.

"Yeah. I do." Caroline scorned and slammed into Mason, chucking him off Elena harshly. She kicked him in the balls and threw him across the forest floor, as she sang, "Told ya! Come on guys!"

"What is that?" Elena asked. Caroline had lead us to an overgrowth, to some stone steps.

 _"He's not going to tell us anything. Kill them both."_

"Caroline? Caroline? What is it?" Elena pleaded.

"Her mom. She's killing them!" I answered for her. Caroline was frozen solid.

"No, no, no! Elena, no!" Caroline babbled and grabbed Elena's arm.

"We have to stop her!" Elena pleaded.

"No, I can't!" Caroline whined, "Elena, she's going to find out about me! Elena!"

"Fine. Stay here." I scorned and followed Elena down the steps into what looked like an old, crumbling cellar.

I gestured at Elena to stay well back. The creaking gate had attracted attention from one of the deputies. I picked up a splintering plank of wood and waited for him to creep around the corner. His gun was raised, his finger was dancing over the trigger; he wasn't the welcoming party. I smacked the man across the back of the head and Elena rushed inside whilst I dipped out of the deputy's way, and out of his groggy fists.

"Elena! What are you doing?" Sheriff Forbes hissed.

"You can't kill them! I won't let you!" Elena pleaded.

The deputy shoved me harshly into the cellar after my sister and pointed his gun at me. I wasn't about to risk seriously hurting this man, so I complied. I raised my hands, to humour him; convinced he wasn't about to shoot an unarmed teenager in front of his boss. Stefan was out cold, riddled with bullets. Damon was also sporting many holes but was conscious and groaning on the floor.

"What was that?" The other deputy hissed. A gust of wind had slammed the creaking gate shut and blown a breeze across our faces. Elena and I knew perfectly well who that was.

"Who else is with you?" The deputy with his gun shoved into my back asked.

"What the?" The other deputy groaned.

It only took one slow blink and the first deputies was screaming out. Caroline ripped into his neck. He slumped to the floor as she snapped the arm of the other guy. In a few seconds, they were both dead. I was…a little taken aback by the sheer ferocity and made a mental note not to tango with Caroline.

"Hi, mom." Caroline uttered, with blood dripping down her face.

* * *

"You need to drink some deputy blood." Damon joked as he crawled back over to Stefan. He was upright now, but still struggling to breath. The bullets were taking a lot longer to rise out of his body, they were still cutting through him.

"Oh, no. I'll be fine." Stefan huffed out, "It's just going to take a bit longer."

"Damon's right. If there's ever a time to break your diet-" Caroline uttered.

"He said he didn't want it, okay?" Elena said, and caressed his back.

"This is a most unfortunate situation. Two deputies dead. And you." Damon rasped, turning his attention to the Sheriff, "What am I going to do with you?"

"You won't tell anyone, will you?" Caroline asked, "Mom? Mom? Please! Look, I know that we don't get along, and you hate me, but I'm your daughter, and you'll do this for me, right? Mom, please. He will kill you."

"Then kill me." Her mother replied, solemnly.

"No." Caroline scorned.

"I can't take this. Kill me now." She pleaded.

"But you were going to drag it out so painfully." Damon scorned as he snatched her up.

"NO!" Stefan barked.

"Damon, don't!" I pleaded.

"Damon, please!" Elena wailed.

"Relax, guys. No one's killing anybody." Damon grinned and turned to the Sheriff, "You're my friend. We got to clean this up."

Stefan took care of the bodies. Damon kept Caroline's mom in their basement jail until the vervain was out of her system, and then he was going to compel her to forget the freak show that had played out before her, to forget that her vampire daughter had murdered two of her deputies.


	24. The Balance

**14:09 – Lockwood Manor – Setting up for the Masquerade Ball**

"Hey, stranger." I heard Tyler utter as he approached me from behind. I grimaced before composing myself enough to turn and face the guy. He began to explain, "Hey. Look, I'm really sorry, I've been totally wrapped up in family stuff, and here we are again, dressing up for another damn party. Cycle never ends."

"It's okay." I uttered, and brushed past him.

"Ro." Tyler whispered and pulled me gently to face him, "I am-"

"Remember what I said up in your tree-house?" I said.

"Okay." He nodded, "No more apologising."

"We could always go for…no more being a jackass, but sure, no more apologising works too." I scoffed light-heartedly. I honestly didn't want to fight with him, especially amongst Mrs Lockwood's flurry of volunteers.

He paused for a beat, like he was trying to figure something out, and eventually landed on, "It's just been crazy."

"You gonna give me _anything_ else to work with here?" I asked, knowing it was futile.

I was stuck in the middle here. He didn't know that I knew, but really I didn't know that what I knew was even there to know. I couldn't help him with the whole werewolf thing without giving up my thing, and my friends' thing, and it wasn't my thing to give up, especially when I didn't understand most of it. My brain felt like it was turning to soup, the rate it was firing at; I just wanted everything to go back to normal in that moment.

"I…I want to." Tyler uttered.

"Right. So, that's something." I sighed and hypocritically noted, "I'm not good with the whole being in the dark, blind trust thing."

"I told you a while ago that I wasn't good enough for you." He uttered quietly.

I scoffed and thought, right…this is all my own doing. How dare I have faith and trust in you, I'm the real idiot here.

"Mmhmm, you did." I uttered quietly, "But then…you did a whole bunch of other stuff that had me thinking just maybe…I was worth changing for."

"Ro-"

"Don't." I scoffed, "I…think you're right, I do deserve better than this."

"Rosie, I don't want to lose you." He declared, sincerely.

"And I don't want to feel this way anymore, so just give me a minute, okay?" I uttered, "You're not gonna…lose me, but I really need to get over you."

"What does that mean? Give you a minute?" Tyler sighed, "I told my mom you were my date tonight."

"I'm sure you'll have no problem finding someone else." I said as I left, "How about one of those girls from your free house?"

* * *

 **18:50 - Gilbert House - Kitchen**

"You said you had something?" I whispered to Ric as he passed over the plates, "The other day?"

"Right." Ric whispered and glanced over at Jenna to check she was still deep in conversation on the phone, "Come on." He gestured to follow him through to the living room for more privacy and explained, "So, we've been wrapped up in this sun and moon curse, and everything surrounding it has been pretty vampire/werewolf heavy, and not really that relevant to you on the surface. But...I was quizzing Bonnie on what this would actually take to pull off, it's next level power, cursing two entire _species_ , for lack of a better word."

"Okay?" I whispered back.

"She said that...vampires and werewolves are abominations of nature. They shouldn't exist." Ric explained, "And so...the shaman would be able to draw upon power from witches on the other side, since they would all lean towards wanting to expel said abominations. Everything in nature is centred upon this idea of balance, the circle of life, give and take. She said it all eloquently, I'm butchering it."

"O...kay." I uttered, with a squint, "Still not seeing where I fit in."

"I looked into Isobel's origin research." Ric explained, "Supposedly, vampires came about by a powerful witch defying the laws of nature, by committing the elements to human form, and then well...butchering _them_."

"Sounds like a big eff you to nature." I nodded.

"Exactly." Ric nodded, "To break nature they needed something to break. But then...nature doesn't break so easily. The witch messed with it, found a loophole but balance is always restored. So, nature sent them back from the other side, to protect the balance, to make sure this never happened again"

"This...just sounds like a fairy tale." I shrugged.

"I told you it was weak at best." Ric agreed.

"So you're saying...I didn't burn in that fire because...I'm protecting fire?" I asked.

"I'm saying it checks off against a few of these." Ric whispered as he handed back my scribbled note, "Maybe look into this witch a little more, and the origin story, talk to Bonnie, see what you think."

"Thanks, Ric." I nodded and stuffed the note into my pocket as we wandered back through.

* * *

"Where's Jeremy?" Elena asked, as she entered the kitchen.

"He went out with Tyler, they're total besties these days." I uttered with a sour tone.

"How'd it go today?" Ric asked her.

"There were a few hiccups, but yeah." Elena said, and turned to my raised brow, "I will fill you in later."

"Of course, I understand." Jenna said plainly, "Elena, it's for you."

"Who is it?" Elena asked, but Jenna simply handed the phone over blankly and returned to chopping. The three of us exchanged a confused look and she answered the phone, "Hello?"

Elena's face plummeted. She turned away from us brashly and staggered away. Ric and I shrugged at each other and watch her in confusion.

"Katherine." Elena huffed out eventually, and shook her head, "No." She turned sharply around and screamed out, "JENNA! NO!"

We all snapped around to watch Aunt Jenna slam her kitchen knife right into her stomach, cough and splutter and slump to the floor. I froze in place.

"Jenna!" Ric barked and sprinted to her side, "Call 911!"

"Oh my god." I muttered under my breath, as my heart pounded in my ears. She was wailing out in agony and confusion at what had just happened. I snatched the phone out of Elena's hands and dialled furiously, it felt like solid minutes passed before I was asked to declare my emergency. I shakily babbled, "My-My, I need an ambulance. My aunt has-she has a knife in her stomach, she's bleeding really bad."

"Rosanna-no, don't." Elena uttered as I put down the phone and made my way over to our aunt.

"I can help her." I uttered.

"No! We-the ambulance is coming." Elena said, "It's okay."

"I helped Stefan!" I wailed.

"You accelerated his own stupid-fast healing." Elena said.

"We don't know what effect you have on humans." Ric said, with a heavy heart.

* * *

 **19:43 - Mystic Falls Memorial Hospital - Emergency Room**

"Rosanna!" Jeremy hissed, and stormed over to me, flapping his phone around, "What the hell happened?"

"Hey." I exhaled harshly, and embraced him tightly, "Katherine happened. She compelled Jenna through the phone, she's been in our house. She's been watching us all this time. I'm-I'm just waiting for Elena to come out."

Jeremy slumped down next to me, and sighed, "This is bad."

"I know." I whispered, and our eyes shot to the sliding doors.

"Hey!" Jeremy huffed out and rose to meet Elena, "Is she okay?"

"The doctors told Alaric that she got lucky." Elena told us, "She's going to make it. She's gonna be okay."

"Does she remember what happened?" Jeremy asked.

"No, nothing." Elena shook her head, "It's all a part of Katherine's mind compulsion."

"Why go after Jenna, of all people?" I asked.

"Because of me." Elena cried, "Because she's trying to send a message, that she could get to anybody."

"Hey, come here." Jeremy said, and pulled our sister close, "It's going to be okay."

"No, it's not." Elena cried and shook her head. I caressed her arm as she cried into Jeremy's shoulder.

"She's going to pay, Elena." Jeremy told her, "I don't know how, but she's gonna pay."


	25. That's My Cue

**13:01 – Gilbert House – Kitchen**

Jenna was brought home from the hospital and settled in the living room with Matt for company.

"So, what are we gonna do?" Jeremy hissed once the three of us were alone in the kitchen.

"Make lunch." Elena uttered simply and passed me a baguette out of the bag of groceries.

"About Katherine." I scorned, waving the baguette back at her.

"We're not gonna do anything." Elena stated calmly.

"She tried to kill Jenna." Jeremy hissed, "We can't let her get away with that."

"Yes, we can." Elena said, "If it keeps us safe, then we can."

I exchanged a bewildered look with Jeremy and asked, "What if she tries something else?"

"She won't." Elena whispered, "Katherine hurt Jenna because I didn't do what she said. Well I'm doing it now. Me and Stefan are over. She wins. The end."

"You're being naïve and you know it." Jeremy scorned and grabbed his jacket.

"Where're you going?" I asked.

"Out." Jeremy declared and hollered to Jenna, "I'll be back."

"Don't look at me, I have no idea where he's going." Elena shrugged to me and set out the plates.

"Elena, we can't do nothing." I implored my sister.

"I don't want her finding out about you." Elena whispered back, "I thought Jenna was safe and she still got hurt, I don't want Katherine using you as a significantly more powerful weapon against me. So please, stand down, for now."

I could have argued that I couldn't be compelled. She would argue that none of the rules applied to Katherine, she'd always find a way, a work around. I didn't argue with her because she looked so defeated. Elena had a big heart and the thought of others being in harms way because of her, was constantly eating away at her. She just needed some time to get her fire back.

* * *

 **18:30 – Gilbert House – Living Room**

"I feel like an invalid." Jenna groaned as she reached over for a slice of pizza.

"That's because you are an invalid." I laughed and helped her settle back down.

"Where's Jeremy?" Elena asked, "Isn't he hungry?"

"He already left for the Lockwood Party." Jenna explained.

"He went to that?" I snorted, "Hell hath frozen over."

"I'm glad. He needs to have more fun, lose some of that emo-thing." Jenna said, and turned her attention to me, "I get that she's all heartbroken and wallowing, but why aren't you going? I thought you and Tyler were smitten."

"Okay. I'm gonna get some napkins." Elena declared and sauntered through to the kitchen to confront Ric. The two had a hushed conversation, that I couldn't make out. Ric was imploring her to do something.

"Hey, the pizza's good, but it isn't 'ignore the question' good." Jenna scoffed.

"I had my first time with Tyler, and I fell…pretty hard for him, and he was nice for a bit, and then he was a reclusive asshole and also made out with Matt's mom that one time." I uttered and stuffed the crust into my mouth, then waffling, "So I don't want to see him, let alone party in his house."

"I…didn't know that." Jenna asked, with a slice of pizza flopping down her hand, "So that makes two heartbroken wallowers, the invalid, and…"

"A history teacher." I shrugged.

"He's more than that." Jenna giggled, "The glutton-for-punishment widower."

"That's a bit of a mouthful." I laughed.

"Do you want me to send him away? So we can talk about it?" Jenna whispered.

I shook my head vehemently, "No. No, seriously, it was a while ago, and there's nothing more to say. It's done."

* * *

 **09:55 - Mystic Falls High School - Hallway**

"Stefan?" I called out and sauntered over to him.

"Hey, Ro." Stefan sighed, with a half-smile. His mind was clearly elsewhere.

"Hey, so, if I need to cover for Elena, you need to give me a head's up." I said.

"Uh, what?" Stefan rasped.

"Don't get me wrong, Jenna's totally cool with the two of you, she really likes you, but you're kinda pushing it." I shrugged.

"What are you talking about?" Stefan said.

He stopped in his tracks, and put his arm out.

"You. And Elena?" I explained, "I'm glad you're back together, and the doom and gloom is lifted, however temporarily that may be. But if she's gonna sleep over-"

"Wait, wait. Hold on a minute." Stefan said, and shook his head, "We're not back together."

"She didn't stay at your place last night?" I asked, with a raised brow.

He wasn't playing dumb, he genuinely had no idea what I was talking about.

"No. I mean, I saw her at the party, but that was it." Stefan said, "She didn't sleep over."

"Her bed hadn't been slept in, and Mrs Lockwood said her car was still in the driveway...and I was just gonna be the reluctant messenger for that." I explained, "Where is she, then?"

Stefan's expression darkened, his mind was racing.

"Stefan?" I rasped.

"Find Bonnie. I need to talk to Damon." Stefan drawled and stormed off.

* * *

 **10:14 - Mystic Falls High School - History Classroom**

I had caught Bonnie up to speed on the situation and she had assembled all that she needed to perform a locator spell. She spread out a map of the state, and lit a pillar candle.

"How does this work?" I asked her.

"I'll use your blood to draw the energy for the tracking spell." Bonnie explained, "You're blood-related. It'll make the connection stronger."

"All right, Alaric said we gotta clear out of here within 10 minutes." Stefan declared as he burst into the room, with Jeremy in tow, "I got weapons. He stocked me up."

"Are you ready?" Bonnie asked me.

"What are you doing?" Jeremy asked.

I nodded and she cut the palm of my hand with a dagger. I winced at the slice and blinked, disheartened to see that my hand was already healing over.

"Crap." I huffed out, and turned to my brother, who was already rolling up his sleeve.

Without a word, I stepped out of the way, and Jeremy leant over the map, presenting his hand to Bonnie. He joked about finally being useful and could almost hear Damon sneering that being a blood bag was his only use. He clenched his fist; three drops of blood plopped on to the map. Bonnie began chanting gibberish and we watched the blob of blood track away from Mystic Falls. It kept going, further and further down south. I'd never even been out this way. We collectively tensed, wishing for it to stop.

"There." Bonnie declared, and pointed, "She's there."

"That's 300 miles away." I groaned and passed Jeremy a bundle of paper towels to press against his palm.

"No, Bonnie, we need a more exact location than that." Stefan implored.

"That's as close as I can get." Bonnie said.

"We can map it, get an aerial view." Jeremy suggested, "It'll show us whats around there. Help us narrow down the area."

"Perfect." Stefan said, "Call me with whatever you find."

"Call us." I declared, to Stefan's fallen shoulders and heavy sigh, "If you're going in blind, you're not going alone."

"No, I'm coming with you too." Jeremy scorned.

"No, Jeremy, you're not." Stefan refused, point blank.

"I'm not gonna just sit here." Jeremy implored, "What if she's hurt, okay? Or worse?"

"She's not. You three go back to your house, just in case." Stefan suggested, "I'm gonna call you the minute I find her."

"You can't do this alone." Jeremy said.

"He's not." I said, and picked up the other bag, "Let's go."

"Rosanna." Stefan sighed and put an arm out to stop me, "I can't watch your back and focus on Elena, it's too much-"

"I never asked you to." I scorned back.

"We agreed you're laying low, you're an unknown quantity." Stefan implored.

"Ow. My feelings." I sneered, "That all means jack the second my sister's in trouble. So save it. We're wasting time."

"That we are, Scooby Gang." Damon declared, as he poked his head into the classroom.

"You're coming?" Stefan asked.

"It's Elena." Damon shrugged and lead the way.

* * *

 **12:46 - On the Road**

"Alaric sure likes his weapons." Stefan muttered under his breath as he rummaged around in his bag.

"What the hell is that?" Damon asked.

"Well, it's a vervain bomb or grenade launcher or something like that." Stefan said.

"Weird." Damon muttered and shuffled his driving position a little further away.

I leant forward from the back and asked, "Hey, how much further is it?"

" _Are we there yet_?" Damon mocked, and received a harsh slap on the shoulder from me.

"About 80 miles." Stefan informed me and asked, "Who do you think took her?"

"Someone from Katherine's past." Damon suggested, "She said she was running from someone. Maybe they got the wrong girl."

"Thank you for helping me." Stefan said.

"Can we not do the whole road trip bonding thing?" Damon scoffed, "The cliche of it all makes me itch."

"Oh, come on, Damon, we both know that you being in this car has absolutely nothing to do with me, anyway." Stefan said.

"The elephant in the room lets out a mighty roar." Damon sneered.

"Well, it doesn't have to be an elephant." Stefan suggested, "Let's talk about it."

"Oh good lord." I mumbled and shrunk down in my seat.

"There's nothing to talk about." Damon uttered.

"That's not true. Sure there is. Let's just get it out." Stefan sang, "I mean, are you in this care because you want to help your little brother save a girl that he loves, or is it-is it because you lover her, too? Hmm? I mean, come on, express yourself. I happen to like road-trip bonding."

"Keep it up, Stefan." Damon scorned, "I can step out of helping as easily as I stepped in."

"Nope, see that's the beauty of it." Stefan scoffed, "You can't."

I watched them glare at each other for what felt like a solid minute, before uttering, "Maybe...maybe the glares can wait until we're uh-stationary, and our eyes can go back on the road?"

* * *

"We're getting close." I informed them, "Jeremy said there's an access road just past mile marker 6."

"If you want some, just ask." Damon sang as he slurped on his blood bag.

"I want some." Stefan said.

"Aw, that's so sweet, gonna be all big and strong to save your girl." Damon scoffed, "Well, don't worry. I've got your back, you'll be fine."

"I'm not joking." Stefan revealed, "I been drinking a little every day, slowly increasing my intake and building up my strength."

"Does Elena know you're drinking blood?" Damon asked.

"I've been drinking hers." Stefan said.

"Oh." I shuddered, and winced.

"Hmm. How romantic." Damon scored, "Since we're road-trip bonding, remember the days when all you lived for was blood? You were the guy who would rip someone apart just for the fun of it?"

"You mean when I was more like you?" Stefan retorted.

"Yes, Stefan. Exactly. Back when you put blood into me so I could be a big, bad vampire." Damon sneered, "Wonder if Elena would be so quick to open her veins to that guy? By the way, what happened to that guy? He was a hoot."

"Guess he found something else to live for." Stefan replied coolly.

"That's the marker." I said louder than necessary.

* * *

"House should be just beyond those trees." Damon declared, "Wait. Now, I've got a little more experience than you do with this sort of thing."

"So what's your point?" Stefan asked.

"My point is that whoever has Elena is probably who was after Katherine in 1864 and before that." Damon said.

"And?" I asked, with a hint of annoyance. Yet again, we were wasting unnecessary time here.

" _And_ it puts them at 500 years old and strong." Damon said, "Are you sure you wanna do this?"

"Yeah, I'm certain I wanna do it." Stefan nodded.

"Why is this even a thing? Let's go!" I implored.

" _Because_ , Little Gilbert, we go into that house we might not come back out." Damon scorned.

"All right then, I won't come out." Stefan shrugged and turned to leave.

"So noble, Stefan." Damon scoffed.

"I can't think of a better reason to die." Stefan said, "But you wanna stay here, I'll totally understand."

* * *

 _Rose._ He said, his tone was well-spoken, and cutting.

 _I don't know who it is._ She scorned back. Her voice was flustered and crackling, like she'd been crying moments ago.

 _Up here._ Stefan taunted.

 _Down here_. Damon scoffed.

I could hear the gusts of wind as he shot towards the voices, and the groans of displeasure at being toyed with. I caught sight of him through the banister, he was composed, dressed in a sharp expensive suit, he was snapping the arms off a coat rack, fashioning a weapon to dispatch his intruders.

"Excuse me." The well-spoken kidnapper declared, "To whom it may concern, you're making a great mistake if you think that you can beat me. You can't. You hear that? I repeat, you cannot beat me. So I want the girl on the count of 3, or heads will roll. Do we understand each other?"

I couldn't keep my eyes off him. Elena had been whisked away by Stefan and informed of the plan. She staggered along to her starting position.

"I'll come with you." Elena huffed out, as she emerged on the landing, "Just please don't hurt my friends. They just wanted to help me out."

"What game are you playing with me?" He asked as she snapped the pin out of the vervain grenade and chucked it at his face.

"AAH!" He screamed out in agony as his face burned and blistered.

This was my moment; the second hit. My cue had long gone and left us. My hand rose but the rest of my body did not. I threw the vervain grenade against the wall, full-pelt, from where I sat in a nook at the top of the stairs. The glass and liquid sprinkled over me as I sat there, completely frozen, unable to even shield myself from the fallout. I was shaken from the lack of power I had over my own extremities.

"What the fu-" I muttered.

I heard Stefan step in, shots were fired at the man who was supposed have to be weakened by two vervain grenades by now. I struggled to my feet after resolving that I no longer had a grenade to throw at him, it was although I had now been granted permission to rise, now that I wasn't a threat. Stefan had improvised; he rugby-tackled the man and tumbled down the stairs with him. They struggled and fought furiously at the bottom.

I snatched up another vervain grenade from the bag and took up position to toss it, but my hand jerked to a sharp halt and clenched around the glass instead. Once again the grenade exploded all over me. I couldn't...I couldn't hurt this man.

"Who's side are you on?!" Damon roared as he finally impaled the man with his own coat rack, skewering him against the wall.

It was done; he was desiccating over. Damon's attention snapped to the other woman who shot out of the house.

"Just let her go." Elena barked as Damon moved to chase her down.

"Hey, come here, you hurt? You okay?" Stefan uttered as Elena thundered down the stairs and jumped into his arms.

"What the hell was that?" Damon hissed at me.

"We've got a long drive back to figure it out." I uttered and sauntered out of the front door.


	26. Common Sense

**11:45 – Mystic Falls High School – Basketball Courts**

Vanessa was closing out the practice with a last-minute run through of the changes to the routine, to ensure everyone was on the same page. I was only half listening to her, I was mostly wrestling with the idea of saying something to Tyler after practice.

Tyler was playing one on one with Travis up at the basketball courts; originally, he was beating him with incredible ease, but I watched as he thought better of it and let a few shots slip by him to cover his tracks. Natalie and Elena had filled me in on the Masquerade Ball shit-show; I had a pretty well-rounded view of what the official party line was, and what actually transpired that night. It wasn't simply a tragic case of under-age drinking gone wrong. Katherine had compelled Matt and Sarah to pummel Tyler until his base instincts got the better of him and he killed them. She needed a werewolf, and now…she had one.

Vanessa dismissed the team; I cringed as Natalie passed me the routine she had scribbled down…so my lack of attention wasn't subtle then.

"Are you still hung up on him?" Natalie whispered, as we packed our stuff into our gym bags.

"No. I just haven't seen him in a while." I responded, "I wanted to make sure he's okay, after the whole…Masquerade Ball thing."

"Okay. But, you know he's not your problem anymore, right?" Natalie reminded me, "You're officially off the hook. He doesn't exactly deserve you running to his side at his hour of need."

"Everything aside, he's still my friend." I said, with a shrug.

"Yeah and I'm yours, so…I'm just saying, be careful." Natalie offered, "I'll see you in Bio."

I didn't know what I was going to say, let alone whether I was going to say anything at all. I vividly remembered how much I struggled in the beginning, feeling like I was trapped with no answers and no one to turn to. I was supposed to be stepping back, getting over him; charging straight in to be by his side, yeah, kind of flies in the face of that. Could I put the getting-over-you plan on pause? Just for a minute. It's not going to be a minute though, is it? He's going to flash that stupid grin or say something super charming and it will set back the getting-over like at least another month or two. And hey, I have a whole bunch of new concerns of my own, like my freeze frame friendly-fire tendencies, I should be focusing the help on me. Oh, screw it.

"What are you doing?" Caroline whispered harshly and grabbed my arm to hold me back.

"Ow." I hissed back and pried my arm out of her grasp.

"Sorry." Caroline replied to my wince, genuinely, "But…what are you doing?"

"I was-" I started but was cut off sharply.

"You've been glued to Tyler for the past like…20 minutes." Caroline whispered and folded her arms tightly across her chest, "Don't tell me you're going to spill your guts to the guy?"

"He has no idea what's going on." I explained, "And I'm not saying we've got everything figured out, but it helped me so much just knowing I wasn't alone. I've got a whole circle of people who have my back."

"I have Tyler's back." Caroline explained, "I'm going to help him, okay? I've already suggested inducting Tyler into the Scooby Gang and the answer was a resounding no. It wasn't personal, he's just a completely unknown quantity, so his membership is on pause, until we figure it out."

"And we have all the answers on my thing?" I scoffed.

"You're Elena's sister." Caroline replied, "And you were kept out of the loop until you needed to be in it, same with me! And, same with Tyler."

"Full moon's coming." I noted with sunken shoulders.

"I will handle it, okay?" Caroline declared, "He's not alone, but he _is_ in a very volatile place. And if you can't be sure that you're not going to spill secrets which aren't yours to spill or get into a lover's quarrel that might stir up the big bad wolf, then…it's better if you leave him be."

"Rosie? Sorry, am I interrupting something?" Bonnie asked as she sauntered over to us.

"Nope. I've taken up enough of her time." Caroline beamed and whispered to me as she left, "Let it go."

She wandered over to see Matt, who was now speaking with Tyler. She was right. I knew she was right, but it still didn't sit well to be called out like that.

"What is it?" I asked Bonnie, with a heavy heart.

"I have an idea and I need your help." Bonnie declared and beckoned to follow her.

* * *

 **12:40 – Salvatore House – Drawing Room**

"I might be able to lower the tomb spell long enough for you to get in there and grab the moonstone from Katherine." Bonnie declared.

"How?" Jeremy asked, "It took both you and your grams last time and look what happened to her."

"I'm well aware of what happened." Bonnie snapped back, "But I've learned a few new things."

"Bonnie…" Jeremy sighed.

"How will you get it?" Bonnie asked Stefan.

"She hasn't been feeding. She's weaker. We're not." Stefan explained.

"Kind of feels like you're underestimating her." I uttered.

"It's a plan, Little Gilbert." Damon said with a smirk, and a ruffle of my hair, "Is it perfect? What plan is?"

"Let me do it." Jeremy offered, "I've got my ring. I can get in, get out, no spells necessary."

"Gee thanks, you 16-year-old child." Damon scoffed, "Why didn't we think about that? Why are you even here? We're maxed out on kindergarteners."

"Maybe I can help better the plan." Bonnie suggested, "Do you have anything that belongs to Katherine?"

* * *

"This belonged to Katherine." Stefan declared, producing an old photograph of Katherine. Of course, the psychotic narcissist would tote around a photograph of herself. He explained, "I found it with her things after I thought she was dead, but it was hers."

Bonnie placed the photograph inside a small bowl, flicked two drops of water on it and waited for the flames to erupt. Her audience flinched at the trick, but Bonnie remained frozen. She inhaled slowly and muttered something in her usual gibberish.

"What will this do?" Damon asked.

"I can turn the metal to ash. Blow the ashes on her, and it'll incapacitate her for a minute or two." Bonnie explained, "Long enough for you to get the stone and get out. Get ready."

* * *

"I've got the torches." Stefan declared as he re-emerged with a duffel bag.

"Alaric's stake gun's in my trunk." Damon said and turned his attention to the witch, "Bonnie?"

"Go ahead." Bonnie told them, "I'm almost done. I'll meet you there."

"Okay." I said, and helped Stefan with one of the bags.

"Wait. Why are you going with them?" Jeremy asked me, putting a pause on us leaving.

"Jeremy, let it go." Bonnie asked.

"No. You're not strong enough to do this alone. It's too dangerous for me to get an invite." Jeremy scoffed and turned back, "So, why are you going?"

"She's indestructible, perfect canon fodder." Damon smirked and patted me on the shoulder, as if that were a compliment.

"So am I." Jeremy noted, raising a hand to his ring, "Except if Katherine gets a hold of her, she gets super-juiced, like Stefan did. She could Incredible Hulk her way out of the tomb for all we know."

"I'm not _going in_." I informed him and turned to leave once more.

"Luka taught me how to channel another witch's power." Bonnie explained to him, "I am stronger if I draw power from nature, from the elements."

The three of us collectively sighed at Bonnie's untimely honesty and turned back to face what we knew was coming; we needed to diffuse it.

"From her?!" Jeremy scoffed, "No, that's too dangerous, not after what it did to your grams!"

"We believe this is different, Jeremy." Stefan said.

"I'll be fine." I said.

"No offence, but after your self-sabotage last time, you can't exactly be trusted." Jeremy scorned.

"Excuse me?!" I scorned back.

"That was probably the house that was spelled." Stefan offered.

"What a weirdly specific spell, that didn't affect either of you two." Jeremy retorted, "It's too risky. You both could get hurt, or worse."

"And Elena could die." I said plainly, "That makes the risk worth it."

"I'll be fine." Bonnie assured him, "Promise. I promise. I can do this."

"Whatever." Jeremy scorned and stormed out of the house.

* * *

 **14:40 - The Tomb**

"Sorry I'm late, I had to grab the grimoire from home." Bonnie noted as she followed Stefan down the stone steps.

"Not a good time, Rose." Damon groaned as he answered his cell phone and sauntered away.

I left him to it and followed Bonnie down.

"What the hell?" Stefan rasped.

"Is that the moonstone?!" Bonnie exclaimed.

"I hate to interrupt, but today has just been full of surprises." Katherine sang.

She dragged my brother into view, slamming him against the wall. Her mouth was dripping with blood; his neck was ravaged, clearly the source.

"I'm sorry." Jeremy groaned out, "I took some powder."

I wanted to scream out, you idiot! You unbelievable, stubborn, idiotic idiot!

"Don't worry." Katherine said, sweetly, "I know that he's wearing his ring so no matter how many times I kill him, he'll just keep coming back for more. So, I'm going to be in the back playing with my new little toy. You guys just give me a holler when you've got the tomb open."

Katherine snickered and dragged Jeremy's weak body back into the darkness.

Bonnie was frozen in place, clutching the grimoire to her chest.

"Where the hell is Damon?" Stefan asked.

"We can't wait, we have to get him out of there." I said and took one single step forward.

Stefan flashed in front of me so fast that I almost slammed into his chest with the second step.

"If she's fed, she has her strength back." Stefan reminded me.

"We still have what's left of the ash." Bonnie stuttered, "Do you think you can get close enough?"

"I don't have a choice." Stefan declared.

"It's going to take me some time." Bonnie shrugged.

"How long?" I asked feverishly.

"I don't know, a while." Bonnie said uncertainly.

"Just get me in there as soon as you can." Stefan said.

* * *

Bonnie and I were hanging on to each other for dear life as she chanted. The flames of the torches surrounding us billowed and roared. We had to ignore it, ignore our base instinct telling us to jump away from the flames. Our minds had to be clear of anything else. Our thoughts had to be focused; hers on elevating the spell, raising the barrier; mine on Bonnie, feeding her force.

"Ooooh, something's happening." Katherine sang out.

 _Stop this_. A familiar voice whispered into my ear and sent a hot shiver down my spine. I shook my head vehemently, and focused, but the voice did not disperse. You're not real. You haven't appeared since. You're gone. He spoke more firmly. _Open your eyes_.

I peeked open one eye. Bonnie chanted on; a stream of blood trickled from her nose; she was struggling.

 _You're going to kill your friend._ The voice informed me. _It isn't hers to hold._

I felt what I can only describe as a ghostly grasp pulling against my wrist, urging me to let go. Bonnie's grip snatched onto my arm like a vice in response. I winced and gasped, "Ow! Bonnie!"

"Bonnie. No." Jeremy pleaded, "You have to stop her, she's not strong enough!"

"Maybe she is." Stefan rasped.

"Bonnie, listen." I hissed at her, "We need to stop."

"You've got to stop her!" Jeremy shouted.

"Okay, you need to stop!" Stefan implored, "BONNIE!"

Bonnie's grasp on my arm immediately relinquished as she tumbled down to the floor, unconscious. I slammed down a heartbeat later into darkness.

* * *

I blinked a few times for my eyes to adjust; my heart sank at the sight of him.

"Your lives are limited." Ignatius declared as he stood over me, "Yet you risk them so flippantly."

"Is this where you live?" I asked as I glanced around at my surroundings; I was back in the blinding white abyss once more.

He rolled his eyes and stated, "This is where we can speak."

"And the creepy whisper thing?" I groaned as I sat up and clutched my torso.

"Drawn from you." Ignatius stated, "It's quite easy to get to you whilst you're doing something stupid."

"Is that why I feel like I've been hit by a tanker truck?"

"No, consider that a small deterrent from nature; to knock you down a peg." He explained, "The witch cannot harness you. She is new. That power is unprecedented."

I groaned, "Where the hell have you been? You just sit in nothingness until you feel like swooping down with a life lesson? I could have used a little insight into what the hell is going on, you know? A little helping hand here and there."

"There's a simple reason that you couldn't hurt him." Ignatius stated, ignoring everything I had said before. Standard.

"Oh and let me guess, here comes a riddle, rather than one simple sentence." I scoffed.

"You created him." He said.

I paused for a beat before releasing a low, "What."

"There was only one witch powerful enough to perform the trick you just tried; and with it, she created monsters, so forgive nature for plugging that loophole. You cannot be channelled; it's yours to protect. Tell your witch to light a candle next time, that's allowed." Ignatius semi-explained with a smirk.

"I-I can hear Stefan." I uttered.

"You're waking up." Ignatius stated plainly, "It's been a pleasure, Rosanna, try not need me in the foreseeable future."

"Oh because it's really popping off in here?" I scoffed, and gestured wildly to the blank space. I felt quite nauseous when I looked down; it was just blank space with no perspective of what you were standing on, just plain white space that made your eyes go all funny.

"This isn't the afterlife." Ignatius declared with a tickled smile, "And you're wasting our last moments."

"Why couldn't I hurt Elijah?" I rattled off quickly.

"Your line of element was broken to create Elijah." Ignatius stated, "It goes against nature to break what you created."

"Oh my god, an actual answer! Is there some kind of nature rule-book I can study, since your appearances are so random and only semi-helpful?" I asked, hearing my own voice warp as I did.

"Common sense?" Ignatius laughed.

* * *

"Bonnie, hey! Wake up!" Stefan pleaded, and shook her, "Please."

"Yes _please_ , because I'm still in here." Katherine groaned dramatically.

I groaned and cursed as I rubbed my eyes; it was dirty and dark in here; I was back on the floor of the creepy tomb. I needed Stefan's aid to sit up; I was still feeling the full force of nature's 'deterrent'. Consider me deterred, I thought to myself as I struggled; it felt like every single muscle in my body was experiencing amplified day-two post-workout soreness.

"Are you okay?" Stefan asked, and received a slight nod and grimace in return.

A moment later Bonnie stirred into consciousness and was aided upright by Stefan.

"Are you alright?" He asked her.

"It didn't work." Bonnie sobbed, "I'm not strong enough. Even with help, I can't do it."

"Oh, that's too bad." Katherine whined, and turned back on Jeremy, "I'm still hungry."

I would need to see what happened in freeze frame to truly understand it.

Bonnie was thrown into my arms; arms not entirely prepared for such a toss.

Jeremy was thrown across the threshold towards us with a sharp bark from Stefan, "GO!"

Bonnie and I stumbled over ourselves to check Jeremy was alright. He was. He was okay.

Our gaze rose to meet Stefan...stuck on the other side with Katherine.

The reality of what he'd done stifled the air.

Shit.


	27. You Know What To Do

**19:40 - Gilbert House - Jeremy's Bedroom**

Someone was banging on Jeremy's door frantically but stopped just as abruptly. Jeremy shrugged and turned his attention back to the game we were playing, signalling he sure as hell wasn't moving. I sauntered over to the door and found Elena.

"What?" I asked her, "What is it?"

"J-Jenna was just asking if you'd help her with the boxes, but…but it can wait! I'll call you when she needs you for real. It's just a heads up." Elena declared and closed the door immediately after.

I stood there for a moment and squinted in confusion.

"What was that about?" Jeremy asked as I sat back down next to him.

"Elena being a prize weirdo." I muttered.

"Standard, then." Jeremy scoffed.

"Hey, that thing you said before, about the self-sabotage…friendly-fire thing." I said, quietly.

"Nah. Forget about it." Jeremy said, shaking his head, "It feels like I'm the runt of the super-gang sometimes. I just felt helpless and like no one was hearing me."

"Can we pause this?" I asked and received a look of concern as he obliged.

"What's up?" He asked.

"When I died, in that fire, there was this guy who appeared to me, and he semi-explained what happened, but not really."

"Who was he?"

"Ignatius Gilbert." I said, "And back when Bonnie and I KO-ed, he was there again."

"You…died?"

I shook my head and said, "No. He wanted to talk to me. He said that…I can't hurt Elijah, because I created him."

"You're gonna have to run that by me again." Jeremy laughed.

"I don't know what any of this means, or if it's my mind tripping balls, but…" I told him about the story Ric had told me, on how vampires were made: the witch broke nature, she made people out of the elements, and killed them. Nature didn't take too kindly to this. Etc. Etc.

"And Elijah was created by this witch _killing fire_?" Jeremy asked, his voice raising towards the end.

"Again. Could be my blacked-out mind connecting dots via some man I conjured up."

"I don't think we can afford to discount anything anymore. Anything is possible." Jeremy said, "It seems like every other day something ludicrous comes to light, and gets proven true. I mean, Tyler Lockwood is a freaking werewolf. Bonnie's a witch, to name a few…we should find out whether this guy, this Ignatius, was ever real."

"He said once in every 10 generations." I noted, "Do we have records that far back?"

"Yeah." Jeremy nodded, "Yeah, somewhere. There's that tapestry of the family tree, I think it's tucked away at the lake house."

"Okay, wanna go this weekend?" I asked.

"Hell yeah." He said.

* * *

 **08:40 – Mystic Falls High School – Hallway**

"Hey." Tyler said, as he caught up with me in the hallway.

I glanced to my side, and stopped, smiling to greet him, "Hey."

We stood for another beat, just...in front of each other; that grin spread across his face, as we slipped into the next beat. I thought about what I could possibly say to him; strip away the supernatural trials and tribulations from my life and what's left to tell? I had Captain Crunch for breakfast. What am I doing this weekend? Oh, I'm digging up info on an ancient ancestor of mine who's been haunting me. You? Turning into a wolf? Cool.

"Where you headed?" He asked, eventually.

"History." I said, "You?"

"Gym. I, uh-" Tyler began but in typical Caroline fashion, he didn't get past the next syllable.

"Hey, Ro, Elena was looking for you. She was back by her car. She should still be there." Caroline beamed and gestured back.

"Oh." I uttered, "Okay."

"It sounded important." Caroline reiterated, and raised her brow.

"Sure. I'll see you." I said and sauntered away from them.

* * *

 **07:55 - Gilbert House - Kitchen**

"What do you mean, that's all you can say?" Elena scorned.

I rubbed my eyes and sauntered down the hallway, only half listening to the commotion in the kitchen. Elena was groaning at someone; I just assumed it was Jeremy. My groggy state was slapped away the second I saw him: the reason I was dragged down in to that basement that night. The man who was responsible for my death was sipping coffee and shooting the shit in my kitchen.

"I'll tell you more when I'm convinced I can trust you." John declared, and turned to greet me, coolly, "Good morning, Rosanna."

"What the hell?!" I scoffed and felt that oh so familiar prickle beneath my skin as I seethed, "Elena. Why is he here?"

"I'm trying to get to the bottom of that, okay?" Elena said, "Calm down."

"Calm down?" John noted, with a tickled expression.

"Oh god, I'm so late." Jenna laughed as she staggered into the kitchen.

"That's what you get for hitting the snooze three times." Alaric laughed.

Jenna froze at the sight of him and barked, "What the hell?"

"What she said." I scorned.

"Hey, good morning to you, Jenna." John greeted them, choosing to ignore the blatant hostility before him, "Alaric."

"It's okay that I'm confused right, because we were not expecting you, like, ever." Jenna scorned.

"Well, I got in late last night." John explained, "Elena let me in."

"You know, I'm probably just gonna take off." Alaric rasped and kissed Jenna on the cheek before ducking out.

"I'm still confused here." Jenna barked.

"I decided to come back and stay for a while." John said.

"Not _here_ you're not." Jenna scoffed.

"Actually, you can't stop me from living here."

"Actually, I can as legal guardian."

"Yeah, about that..." John said, "Elena, you want me to explain the situation, or would you like to do the honours?"

"Okay." Jenna demanded, "What's going on?"

"I'm sorry Jenna, I should have told you earlier but-" Elena mumbled.

"I'm Elena's biological father." John interrupted, and sauntered back through the house, "There. Now you know."

"What?!" Jenna barked.

"Your dad's an asshole." I scoffed and stormed out of the house to digest the news. Elena...my sister, is my cousin?!

* * *

 **17:05 - Gilbert House - Exterior**

I was so focused on continuing the whole 'storming out on my family' thing from this morning, I didn't even notice him perched on the porch bench.

He flashed in front of me in a blink and requested, "I need you to come with me to talk to Tyler."

"Jesus-" I scorned and slapped a hand over my heart. Once I'd huffed out a few startled breaths I said, "I thought Caroline had this covered? She specifically told me not to get involved, to not even pass the guy in the hallway apparently."

"Tyler knows about his Uncle Mason...and our connection to his death." Stefan explained.

"Yeah, don't say 'our'." I said with a pissy tone, "What connection?"

"He died." Stefan said plainly and tensed his shoulders, "Damon, he-"

"I don't want to know!" I groaned, "So, you killed his uncle, and now he's pissed?"

"It isn't wise for team vampire to handle this one, given what happened to Rose, the bite is no longer a myth." Stefan said, "I was hoping you'd back me up. We need to make him see sense, tell him our side. He's had this Jules woman whispering in his ear, he only has half the story."

"Yeah, and you look pretty awful on that side of events."

"Yes." Stefan said, "And for this to work, he needs to back down, see both sides."

I sighed and said, "Fine. Let's go."

* * *

 **17:30 - Lockwood Manor - Drawing Room**

Stefan and I had worked our way through the french doors leading into the kitchen. Stefan had gestured to follow him further through the house; Tyler was this way. He brought us to the drawing room, and Tyler perked up and spun to face us, sensing it wasn't the maid.

"I'm not gonna hurt you." Stefan said, "I just want to talk."

"Then why did you break in?" Tyler scoffed.

"Would you have let me in otherwise?" Stefan replied.

"Tyler. Please." I said, quietly, as I entered the room and watched his stance relax a little.

"Tyler?" Carol Lockwood called out.

"Ssh." Stefan barked and slammed Tyler against the wall, "Not a word."

"Stefan!" I scorned; that wasn't entirely necessary.

"Tyler?" Mrs Lockwood called out, her voice growing louder as she approached us, "I'm leaving for the memorial."

"Mrs Lockwood, good morning!" I smiled as I stepped out to greet her, and subtly lead her away from them.

"Rosanna! What a lovely surprise, it's been so long." Mrs Lockwood smiled as she embraced me.

"Too long." I smiled back.

"I didn't know you were coming over this evening. Where's Tyler?"

"He's still getting ready." I scoffed with an eye roll, "I'll hurry him along, we'll see you at the memorial."

"My. I didn't think he'd come." She scoffed, as she picked up her purse from the console, "You're a good influence on that boy. Try and get him to wear that blue shirt-"

"With the navy stripe tie?" I suggested.

"You read my mind." She beamed, and caressed my arm, "I must dash, but _you_ must come over for dinner, soon!"

"I'd be delighted. See you soon." I bid her farewell and closed the door after her.

* * *

"Maybe we're getting off on the wrong foot here." Stefan said, as he patted Tyler in apology for his approach.

"What happened to Mason?" Tyler snarled.

"I wouldn't do that." Stefan groaned at Tyler's sizing up to him, "Without a full moon, you're no match for me."

"Tyler, there's a lot for us to talk about." I said.

"You're one of them?" He asked.

"No. I'm a...concerned third party." I said, shaking my head.

"Look, about Caroline, no matter what her flaws are, when push comes to shove, you're gonna want that girl on your side." Stefan said, "She's your friend. Stop being a dick to her."

"I thought vampires hated werewolves." Tyler said.

"That's some sort of leftover idea from another time. Doesn't have to be that way anymore." Stefan explained, "We go to the same school. We have the same friends. We keep the same secrets. This can work, Tyler. I mean, it's your home. It's my home too. I want this to work."

Tyler's phone started to jingle. Stefan and Tyler exchanged a glare which almost audibly spoke 'don't'. Of course, he didn't listen. He dove for the phone and barked, "HELP. HELP." into it before Stefan snatched it out of his grasp.

"Whose number was that?" Stefan demanded, "Dammit Tyler I'm trying to save your life. Can't you see that?"

"We're not your enemies here!" I scorned, "We're your friends!"

"You want to be friends." Tyler scoffed, "Great. We're friends. Will you go now? Thanks for hooking me into that memorial by the way!"

"Look, I don't know what else to say to you, Tyler. I came back to this town because I wanted a life. I wanted to exist where I could have friends and where I could build a family. I have that here. We can both have that." Stefan implored.

* * *

Stefan and I were considering our next move, but coming up with nothing.

"It's Caroline." Stefan said as he answered his phone and excused himself, "Hi. Everything okay? Who is this? Jules? Where's Caroline? Where is she?"

"What's happening?" Tyler demanded.

"Hurt her again and you're dead." Stefan barked and turned to me, "Clearing at Wickery Bridge. 20 minutes before they kill her."

* * *

 **20:15 - Wickery Bridge Woodland**

"You shouldn't be here." Tyler hissed in my ear.

"You're right, I shouldn't. None of us should, but you just had to be such a colossal dick back there and spark this whole thing!" I hissed back.

"Stop." Stefan declared, "It's done."

"I know you're out there." A woman declared, who I presumed to be Jules.

"Where's Caroline?" Stefan asked.

"Locked up tight." She smirked.

"Let her go and I'll release Tyler. It doesn't have to get any messier than it already has." Stefan declared, "I'm not your enemy, Jules."

"It's a little late to be waving a white flag, don't you think?" She scoffed.

"You need to leave town." Stefan said, "No one else has to get hurt."

"I'm not leaving without Tyler." She stated.

"Tyler's free to make his own decisions, as soon as you release Caroline." Stefan said.

"My brother, the peacemaker." Damon sang as he descended upon the scene. Stefan and I harmonised our eye-rolls and felt our hearts sink with a thud. Damon smirked as he said, "Since Stefan got here before me, I'm gonna let him try it his way, before I resort to my way, which is a little bloodier. So, give us Caroline."

"Let go of Tyler." Jules repeated.

"Give us Caroline." Damon repeated, "Without a full moon, it's not an even fight and you know it. We'll take you."

"I'm not so sure about that, tough guy." Jules smirked and whistled.

She summoned a dozen werewolves all armed with various pointy implements, and some toting gas tanks connected to a MacGyver-style flame thrower set up. I winced at first but remembered what Ignatius said, death by fire equals evolving like a Pokemon. Okay, bad analogy, but same idea: the last time I died I went from healing quite quickly to slamming Damon through a banister with a flame-punch. I wonder what awaited me this time. _The last time I died_. That phrase was becoming...normal.

"Let's try this again." Jules smirked, "Give us Tyler."

"You heard her." Damon cringed and shoved the guy, "Go. Get over there."

"Which one of you killed Mason?" A tall broad set man asked.

"Uh, that'd be me." Damon declared and scowled at my very direct gesture towards him.

"Boys, make sure that one suffers." The man ordered.

"We can take them." Damon shrugged at his unconvinced team.

"I don't know about that." Stefan groaned and whispered to me, "Keep back."

"Uh, _you_ should keep back." I scoffed at the horde of werewolves encroaching on us slowly.

"Well, then…" Damon sighed out before picking his priority and charging for Jules.

In the blink of an eye, she'd done some kind of parkour ninja move right over him and sprinted away. The fight was ignited. Stefan charged at the one toting a crossbow; it made sense, he was probably gonna be the sneaky one that bit us in the ass; or rather, staked them in the heart…from a safe distance.

Two werewolves toting flame-throwers made a beeline for me, figuring I was going to be the easier 'vampire' to pick off. Perhaps my little pep-talk pre-fight had calmed my nerves to the extent that I wasn't really scared of them, but that doesn't account for how I just knew what to do. I slammed a palm out to shield myself from the flames, they warped and roared around me, like they were listening to me. I couldn't help but release a little scoff as I manipulated the erupting flames back on to each of the wolves. The flames... they spoke to me. The wolves screamed out in agony and tumbled down to the ground.

"What the fuck man?" One of the wolves cried out, as he watched his friends burn before him. He dropped his stake and tripped on a branch behind him.

"Better them." I rattled out as he staggered back in fear; a fear which gripped me.

"RO." Stefan barked furiously and jumped in front of a stake that was launched at me.

I was too busy maniacally focussed on the fear of God radiating from this one, I wasn't watching my own back. Stefan groaned and yanked the stake out of his shoulder and used it to stab another werewolf. Another stake was launched at me, but Stefan snatched it out of the air and repelled it back at the wolf; it embedded itself into his throat. He slammed down to the ground clutching at his neck, feverishly.

A shotgun blast radiated throughout the woods. Damon was down. The second shot echoed. The third shot sent a searing pain screaming its way through my left thigh, and I was down, but not out; I was pissed. I kicked the man in the legs as he stumbled up to me, snatching him down to the ground. We wrestled for the shotgun.

"DON'T." Someone barked at me from atop of Stefan; the stake in his hand was resting right over his heart, "Drop it, little girl."

"NO!" Stefan barked at me as I began to lower the gun.

"AHH!" Caroline screamed out as she stepped out of the trailer and was slammed against the side, a gun pointed at her head.

Tyler froze as he followed her out and took in the devastation that had unfolded within such a small time frame.

Suddenly, all of the wolves began screaming out in agony and slamming down to their knees. We all glanced around at each other. Damon struggled up off the ground and asked what I was doing. I shrugged; I don't think this is me. A mysterious man was gliding through the clearing, his palms raised to the sky, his eyes pressed shut. He came before us.

"Elijah made a promise to Elena. I'm here to see it's upheld. You need to go." The mysterious man declared, "Get out of here. Now."

Tyler remained, the mysterious man left him a message to deliver; this pack was hereby banished. Damon helped his brother off the ground and I took Caroline's arm for stability as we left.

* * *

"Are you okay?" I asked Caroline.

Caroline shook her head and said, "I wanted to help him."

"I know." I whispered to her, "This is bigger than us, this is centuries of hate, and he's still on like what, day three of this? He doesn't know what to do, who to trust, what's real or not-"

"You're still sticking up for him?" She asked, "After everything he did to you, and everything that _just_ happened? You're just like your sister, your heart totally outweighs your brain."

"Says you, his chief defender." I scoffed.

"Not anymore. Not after I was tortured, and I had a gun put to my head, and he did absolutely nothing." She uttered and shook her head.

"If you could go any slower, Little Gilbert, that would be great." Damon scowled.

"Shut up, Damon." Caroline scorned.

"You shouldn't have stood down, Ro." Stefan declared, "We didn't know Elijah's witch-for-hire was going to save us. They would have killed you anyway."

"She would've come back." Caroline snapped back, "We were the only ones at risk of final curtains back there."

"We still are, so...chop chop." Damon scorned at me.

I was a little taken aback by Caroline's quick jump to my defence, and took note of what Stefan had told Tyler before, Caroline is someone you want in your corner.

I sighed and told Stefan, "You jumped in front of me first, so don't be a hypocrite."

"What was that back there?" Stefan asked, "It was like you were hypnotised?"

"I think I just saw a snail outpace you." Damon smirked, "Look, there he goes. Man, what a big day for bugs the world over."

I stopped in my shaking tracks, out of Caroline's grasp and barked back at him, "Okay the pacing is not poor comedic timing...I had a shotgun blast through my thigh, and it hurts like a damn dick, so lay off."

He rolled his eyes and picked me up in one fell swoop to carry me out of there, barely even flinching at my poorly considered flails of protest.

"That hurt?" He scoffed, "Yeah. Settle, petal."


	28. A Riddle For Another Time

**09:15 – Salvatore House - Lounge**

I had spent the night at the Salvatore house getting bullet fragments picked out of my leg by Stefan; the shotgun had embedded a shower of particles and as I was healing over them repeatedly, it was hard to get them out; it hurt like a bitch.

"How's the leg?" Elena asked as she settled down on the edge of the coffee table, in front of me. I winced at her casual approach, that coffee table was probably older than both the brothers combined.

I nodded and said, "Yeah, stings a little, but it's nearly there."

"You should take it easy." Elena said, "Maybe using your powers drains you or something?"

"Maybe. I think it's just the bullet bits coursing around and my body is flipping out, it's trying to heal and getting immediately hurt again, you know? It was just that pain, everything else was normal, whatever _normal_ is." I suggested with a shrug, and then noticed our conversation wasn't over.

She was lingering. I wedged my bookmark inside my book and placed it down on my lap.

Elena bit her cheek and then said, "I have a massive favour to ask you."

"Shoot." I said.

"Stefan and I…we need some time away, just the two of us, away from all of the death and the werewolf battles and the creepy sacrifices." Elena explained, "And I had this whole romantic weekend planned for us at the lake house, and then I heard from Jeremy that you two have an…excursion planned there."

"Right." I uttered.

"So…I was hoping to have it to ourselves, and you're not really in a super mobile situation right now." Elena noted with wide eyes.

"It was semi-important." I said, "But I guess it can wait until next weekend."

"Okay, great! Thank you so much for this. I owe you. And don't worry about Jeremy. You two have been getting on like when you were little kids again, he's not gonna slump back to his emo days in one week, he's not going anywhere." Elena said and noted, "Oh and Jenna still thinks you're at Natalie's by the way, I laid that on extra thick."

"Thank you." I muttered as she bounced out of the door.

Okay, so Jeremy had told her we were going wake-boarding this weekend. I laughed to myself, quietly grateful for my brother's unnecessary decision to lie for me.

* * *

 **18:50**

"Today was a bust." Damon sulked and flopped down into his chair by the fire.

"Yeah." Alaric rasped and asked, "How's the throat?"

"Sore." Damon sulked.

"What happened? You poke the bear again?" I sneered as Alaric plonked myself down on the sofa next to me.

"Are you not healed yet?" Damon scowled at me, as though he hadn't noticed I was still here until just that second, "This isn't a hotel."

"I'm scouring your library for anything remotely useful." I informed him and gestured around to the little book fort I'd created.

"You're such a Velma." Damon noted and flopped his head back in his chair.

"Yeah, cartoon references aren't becoming on a man of your age." I scowled back.

"Kids, back to Elijah." Alaric interrupted our spat, "The scary dude, with nice hair."

"He's going to be hard to kill." Damon groaned.

"Yeah." Alaric agreed, "I'd think twice before I'd trust that dagger and some ashes to do the job. You're gonna need more info."

"I'm out of sources." Damon groaned.

"Oh, god, I've gotta go pick up Jenna." Alaric noted the time and rose to leave, "Can you do me a favour? Don't kill your news reporter girlfriend."

"If I did, who would report her death?" Damon chuckled and glanced over at me to receive his unamused glare.

"Just don't do it, alright." Ric implored, "She's friends with Jenna and it's bad enough that I'm lying to her about everything else. I hate the lies."

"Yeah, yeah." Damon huffed out.

"Don't worry I'll uh, show myself out." Ric sighed at Damon's floppy composure.

"Good luck." Damon sang.

"You're such an ass." I muttered.

"You say that like its news." Damon sneered, "Look at him scoring brownie points with the niece, _I hate the lies_!"

"Do you mind if I take some of these tomes with me?" I asked, and rose from the sofa, "Not to say I can't stand your company, or anything."

"Shut up." Damon scorned and sat upright in his chair.

A loud thumping crash clattered from the hallway. It sounded as though Ric had slammed against a wall…with a little additional force to plain old gravity.

"Hide." Damon scorned at me and gestured away.

* * *

I glanced down from the balcony upon the scene. Ric was dead on the ground; a stake wedged into his heart. Damon was groaning on the floor, struggling against whatever toxin had been stabbed into his body.

"Whew! Damn you're strong! It took the whole syringe." The assailant remarked and turned to his friends as they sauntered in through the front door, "Grab that one. He's dead."

They kept on coming; I recognised a few of them from last night's flame-thrower showdown. Shit.

"Hi, Damon." Jules greeted him with a smirk, swinging a baseball bat over her shoulder, "Nice to see you again."

The wolves snatched up Damon and dragged him back through to the lounge. One of them was carrying some elaborate metal collar and chains. How does the Elijah beacon work? Do I send up a batman logo and he will come running? Does he know we're in mortal danger by a promise spell or something? I furiously text Stefan; he had his own problems to deal with?! WHAT. Okay, the last time an entire pack of werewolves were against us, I had some back up, I had an air of confidence around me, but this solo battle was a little too much to ask. I crept through to the lounge and peeked through the upper balcony area.

"So, I hear you have the moonstone." Jules began.

"Oh, if you only knew the irony of this moment right now. Let me tell you how this is gonna go. You're gonna torture me, I don't talk, someone loses a heart." Damon sang from his elaborate torture rig, "Last time, it was your boy Mason."

"This time, it will be you." Jules smirked and gestured to her cronies to pull the chain.

Damon wailed out in pain, and I resolved; screw it, I have to try something! I stepped forward but was slammed against the wooden-panelling of the wall. Elijah had me pinned to the wall with a hand over my mouth; I winced out in agony, his forearm was like a solid stone vice. He removed his hand and placed one finger in front of his lips.

"He's the hardest one to keep alive, but you're a close second." Elijah noted, "Stay here. I'd like a word when I'm through."

I did just that. I didn't want to help Damon anymore, a notion which wasn't out with the realms of possibility, it's very easy to not want to help Damon…but this was instant. The interests of Elijah trumped them; the rest didn't matter. Was I compelled? I didn't think I could be. Damon couldn't compel me. Elijah hadn't compelled me not to attack him at that derelict mansion…unless he had? And compelled me to forget it? No, he didn't know Elena existed at that point. Ignatius said I couldn't break what I created. I didn't want to break him, I wasn't stupid. I wanted to help Damon. I couldn't take one more step forward, but I could hear the exchange downstairs.

"You know what the great thing about Buckshot is?" Jules asked Damon, "It scatters through the body, maximum damage. Where's the moonstone?"

"Get over it, honey." Damon chuckled, "You're never gonna get it."

"You looking for this?" Elijah asked coolly. I heard him place the moonstone down on the table, and request, "Go ahead. Take it."

One wolf decided that was a reasonable course of action and from the sounds of the gasps, ended up losing his heart; Elijah's signature move. Two more wolves attempted to leave and…I counted the thuds, they had met the same fate.

"What about you, sweetheart, hmm?" Elijah asked the last snivelling wolf, "You want to take a shot? No? Yes? No? Where's the girl?"

I assumed he meant Jules.

"I don't know." Damon rasped out.

"It doesn't really matter." Elijah noted and slammed his fist into the wolf with a bone-curling crack. He ripped the chains away from Damon and said, "So, you realise this is the third time I've saved your life now?"

* * *

"What are you?" Elijah asked when he reappeared to exactly where he had left me, "A wiccan? What angle are you attempting? A vampire of my first line would account for it but you're alive, I can smell the blood from here, it's overpoweringly pungent."

"Um. Thanks? Did you compel me?" I asked him, finally feeling control seeping back into my limbs. I turned to face him square on.

"I asked you, several questions, first." Elijah noted, and his brow crinkled at my expression. He divulged, "I have yet to compel you, the cooperation was just good sense."

"What do you mean by angle? I don't have an angle."

"I feel somewhat of a connection, a duty to protect which outweighs the simple promise I made to your sister, and it is _annoying_." Elijah noted, coolly, "You called me here."

I stared back blankly at the man and squinted in confusion; I what now?

"A riddle for another time." Elijah declared and turned to leave.

"Wait." I said, foolishly, "That's it? You're supposed to be the big bad. I don't answer your question and you just take it?"

"Would you prefer I tore it from you?" Elijah said, and his brow raised at my widened eyes as I realised what I'd just said, "I thought not. You answered my question. I hear your heart and I don't hear the rhythm of a liar. The connection is not your conscious doing."


	29. In Cahoots

**18:35 - The Grill**

"It has actually been forever since we've done this." Natalie remarked as she glanced around the restaurant for a free table.

"What? Camped out at the Grill and quasi-stalked Matt?" I scoffed.

"Had dinner, just the two of us!" Natalie noted.

"Oh, you mean without Adam hanging off your face?"

"Are you gonna be like this all night?" Natalie sassed.

"Let's just find a table." I suggested with a smirk.

"Yeah, I'm working on it." Natalie said, with an eye roll, "Why is it so packed tonight? Are we missing something? Oh, over there!"

I had just spotted Caroline sitting by herself at the bar, tucking into a cheeseburger, and I couldn't let the opportunity slip by. I told Nat I'd catch up with her in a second and made a beeline straight for Caroline.

"Do I smell?" I whispered to her.

"Excuse me?" She laughed and sat back in her chair.

"Is my blood like…pungent?" I asked her, glancing around to check that no one was listening in, "Elijah said it was pungent."

"It's strong. Really strong." Caroline nodded, "But, it's not like…bad. Pungent sounds bad."

"So, it's nice?" I asked.

"Oh yeah, it's really nice, nice and drinkable." Caroline said and returned to her burger.

"Are you having a third burger?" I asked, noting the collection of plates she'd amassed.

"I can't sit here all night and not order something. It looks weird." Caroline scorned back, "I need a reason to be here."

"And that reason is...you haven't eaten in three days?" I asked with a raised brow.

Caroline merely scorned back at me. I stifled a laugh and raised my hands in surrender; I'd witnessed her bad side, and I shouldn't be dancing so close to it.

"Okay. I'll leave you to-AH. SHIT." I cursed and slapped a hand over my heart.

I snatched on to her bar stool to stay upright and looked down sharply to the source of the pain. Nothing. I looked around the room, frantically. I felt as though I'd been stabbed in the heart. My blood had run cold and I began to panic as my body plummeted in strength.

"Ro? Hey! What is it? Are you okay?" Caroline asked, shooting up from her seat and grabbing me just as my legs gave way, "What's wrong?"

"I-I don't know...something." I huffed out, as my vision began to cloud over.

"It's okay." Caroline whispered, and flung my arm over her shoulder to carry me out, "Here. I've got you."

* * *

 **07:00 - Salvatore House**

My eyes pinged open. I shot up in the bed and glanced around the unfamiliar bedroom. I was at the Salvatore House, in one of the many guest bedrooms; dressed in a pair of Elena's pyjamas. I could distinctly remember collapsing at the Grill...and then...there was nothing but dreams. They were not my dreams...I was following the life of another; Elijah. I saw mostly his interactions with Katherine; they have known each other for centuries. I pushed the covers off and thundered out of the room towards the commotion downstairs.

"Hey." Stefan rasped, in concern, as he saw me appear at the top of the landing, "Hey! Are you alright?"

I beamed and sang to my audience as I bumbled down the stairs, "I feel great. Tip Top. Like...I don't even know what to do with all this newfound energy bubbling away inside of me! Is the sun a little brighter today? Or is that just me? I guess that's a bad thing for you guys. Or maybe not, with your anti-crispy rings!"

Stefan, Damon, and his girlfriend, Andie stared back at me in bemusement, and exchanged a look between them as I chuckled to myself.

"My teeth hurt you're so sweet." Andie noted with a grimace.

"Are you high?" Damon scoffed.

"Have you seen or heard from Elena?" Stefan asked.

"Nope. I just arose, on the right side of the bed, apologies for going off-brand and trying out something other than doom and gloom around here. I bet she's just headed out to enjoy the sunshine. You shouldn't worry so much, Stefan. You'll get frown lines. I haven't seen Elena...um..."

"Since you took a 3-day nap?" Damon said, and rolled his eyes.

"Since I what?" I scoffed.

"Elijah...we put him down...twice." Stefan declared, "Unbeknown to us...that affected you."

"And I went down with him? And I've been up there since?" I asked, and received a stark nod from Stefan. I connected the dots and shook my head and alerted them to the obvious, "I feel…great. Stefan! I feel great now."

"Okay. We get it." Damon scorned, "You're refreshed, and ready for the day!"

Stefan's eyes widened, and he pushed past Damon, rushing towards the basement. By the time I had caught up with him, his face was buried inside the crook of his arm, and he was leaning against the doorway to the cell in defeat. Elijah was gone.

* * *

Eventually, Elena answered one of Stefan's many phone calls, although only briefly.

"Where are you?" He barked into the phone, "Are you okay? Where's Elijah? Where? I'm on my way. No. Listen to me. He can't be trusted. He will use you to get to Klaus. She's awake. She's fine. You can't do this alone. I'll make sure he does nothing stupid."

Stefan scorned and glared at the screen. Damon and I could deduce from those snippets that Elena and Elijah were on a little field trip to stretch Elijah's previously-deceased legs.

"She just hung up on you?" I asked.

"She did." Stefan drawled.

"She's lost it." Damon groaned.

"If anyone can get him to help us kill Klaus...it's her." Stefan noted.

"Bonnie's a way to kill Klaus, Stefan. He thinks she's dead. We have a chance with her." Damon argued.

"She'll kill herself in the process." Stefan said, "Elena's looking for another way."

"Her way's gonna get her killed, so we need to find her and stop her." Damon scorned.

I was missing a few pieces here; something about Klaus thinking Bonnie was 6 feet under? But the most pressing issue, Elena palling around with Elijah, it didn't have me shaking in my boots.

"No. He has no reason to kill her. Just let Elena do her thing." I suggested.

"I'm not taking my advice from you, Elijah Junior, thanks!" Damon scorned back at me.

"She's right. We need to back off." Stefan agreed.

"What?" Damon scoffed.

"I don't like this anymore than you do, but we need to trust her." Stefan said.

"That might be your plan, but mine's better." Damon said.

"I said back off." Stefan scorned into Damon's eyes.

As the brothers exchanged a deathly glare or two, my own phone began buzzing. I pulled it out and glanced at the screen and saw it was my aunt. Stefan shot a desperate look at me, and I shook my head to tell him it wasn't Elena.

"It's Jenna." I said and the second I went to hit accept, Stefan had snatched the phone out of my hand, "Hey!"

"Hello? Jenna. Hey. It's Stefan. Uh, no, Elena's not here at the moment. No. Ro left her phone here." Stefan lied and scrunched up his face, begging me to be quiet as he continued, "Is everything okay? It's really hard to explain on the phone but she was hoping you could stay on campus, just a little while longer. Wait? You're home? Jenna listen to me carefully, whatever you do, do not meet Alaric at the Grill. I'm going to come over right now and explain everything."

"What the hell was that?" I groaned.

"We'll catch up on the way." Stefan rasped and turned to Damon.

"I'd love to lend you a hand, but you wouldn't want me to do anything stupid." Damon rattled out and took a casual sip of his bourbon.

"You're seriously going to be like this?" Stefan scorned.

"You and your girlfriend are calling the shots." Damon grimaced, "I'm just backing off, Stefan. Let's hope your back-up isn't programmed to stab you in the back per her Master's wishes."

I shot a fiery look his way, but Stefan tugged on my wrist, and ushered me out; there was always going to be another chance to fight with Damon, but we had more pressing matters to deal with.

* * *

Jenna had discovered that Isobel, Ric's not-so-dead wife, was Elena's not-so-dead birth mother. Uncle John, of all people, was the one who let the cat out of the bag, just to make it sting that little bit harder. Jenna, for good reason, had completely flipped out, and stormed out of the house. She was staying on campus to write her thesis, and escape her household of liars. Katherine had delivered Elena to Isobel, both under Klaus' instruction, and then Isobel burst into flames in front of her. Katherine was MIA, maybe dead at the hands of Klaus. Bonnie fake-died at the Decade Dance, to fool Klaus into thinking she was no longer a threat. Klaus was also currently inhabiting Alaric's body, hence the urgency in ensuring he was nowhere near Jenna. And I had slept through the whole thing...

"That's...a lot." I uttered as Stefan and I stormed up to the house.

"I know." Stefan said, genuinely, "We can talk about it more after this."

"We need to tell her, Stefan. Everything. She's in more danger not knowing." I decided as I burst into the house, "This ends now."

"That's your decision. I'll follow your lead." Stefan rasped and greeted Jenna as she paced down the hallway, "Hey. Jenna, thank you so much for not going to The Grill."

"Look, guys-" Jenna started and closed the front door behind us.

"No, Jenna, listen, I can explain everything-" I implored but was cut off by Stefan backing up and positioning himself further in front of me.

I followed his gaze and my blood instantly froze. I knew, instantly, it wasn't him. There was something...wild, in his eyes, and the way the glided across you. The air changed, it grew heavier.

"Stefan. Rosanna. How's it going?" Alaric asked, coolly, from the doorway to the kitchen, "We were just preparing brunch. Come."

I exchanged a horrified look with Stefan, and he rasped to follow his lead before he led the way into the kitchen.

* * *

"I find chopping...calming." Alaric announced to his captive audience, and caressed the knife, "The feel of the blade in the hand, maybe."

"I'm still waiting for someone to tell me what the hell is going on." Jenna scorned and looked fiercely between us all.

Stefan and I were still stunned into silence; I was completely unsure of how to navigate this.

"Would you like to tell her, Stefan, or should I?" Alaric grinned and then turned to me, "Ladies first, perhaps?"

I glared back at him, fiercely, and watched the corner of his tickled expression kick up a little further.

"Tell me what?" Jenna scorned.

"Do you believe in vampires, Jenna?" Alaric asked her, and a grin broke at her unimpressed expression, "No? Well, who does, right? Believe it or not, they do have a place in our history, and as a history teacher, I find them fascinating."

"Why are we talking about this?" Jenna asked plainly.

"Well, you've been angry with me for keeping secrets and this is one of my secrets: I'm obsessed with vampires." Alaric declared and chuckled as he began tossing the salad, "There! I said it!"

"Are you joking?" Jenna scorned.

"Not at all!" Alaric grinned and asked, "How about you, Stefan? Are you a fan of vampires?"

"In literature. Bram Stoker." Stefan replied, coolly, "It's dense, but I appreciate it."

The looks and the banter that the two men exchanged spoke volumes; it wasn't the dangerous nature of the situation evoking this tension between them; they knew each other; something, I wasn't sure what, but something had gone down between them.

"Hmm." Alaric hummed and smiled wildly again, he posed, "Did you know that vampires are the oldest creatures of the night? Except for werewolves, of course."

"Werewolves?" Jenna scoffed and walked away from him, "Werewolves. Now I know you're joking."

"You know, I've read that there is an Aztec curse on both species, that keeps werewolves slaves to the moon, and vampires bound by the sun." Alaric declared to the kitchen, "Isn't that right, Stefan? You know, they say these creatures would do anything to have this curse broken, and that they wouldn't care who they had to kill to do it." His eyes slid over to me and he rasped, "Those born against nature don't tend to give a toss about it. Why obey it's whims and laws, and maintain the balance your very existence defies. Food for thought."

A cold shiver ran down my spine as he sauntered past me and began serving the weirdest brunch in history.

* * *

"Oh, I know this all sounds so crazy but...vampires are real." Alaric declared to the table as we all picked at our plates. Alaric clapped his hands together, at which I jumped a little, and announced, "Would you care for some more wine?"

"Get out." Jenna seethed.

"Excuse me?" Alaric scoffed.

Stefan shot a look my way, and squinted subtly, gesturing to sit tight.

"I don't know what it is you're trying to do, or why you're saying these things, but-" Jenna said.

"Jenna." Alaric whined.

"I said, Get. Out." Jenna seethed darkly.

"You heard her." Stefan declared and rose from his seat.

"I'm afraid I don't want to." Alaric sang with a grin to Stefan.

"Fine!" Jenna scoffed and rose sharply from the table, "I'll go!"

"You're not going anywhere!" Alaric scorned and pushed a blade into Jenna's path.

Stefan slammed into Alaric, and pushed the blade into his throat, pinning him against the wall. Cracks shattered into the walls behind them from the sheer force.

"Stefan!" Jenna screamed out, but I held her back fiercely.

"Get her out of here now!" Stefan barked at me.

I pushed Jenna past them and urged her to run, out of the house, out to the car, now!

"You can't kill me, Stefan." Alaric chuckled.

"Watch me!" Stefan scorned and pushed the blade further into his throat.

"Stefan!" I barked at him, urging him to come, I wasn't going to leave him here.

"I may not have a witch protecting me today, but if you kill this body, what's to stop me choosing her as my next one?" Alaric reminded him, with a tickled expression.

"Stefan." I rasped out desperately.

Klaus was right. You kill him. You kill Alaric. You kill our friend.

"RO! LEAVE." Stefan scorned back at me; his face was contorting into his true vampire form.

He slammed his fists into Alaric, and continued to beat him to a pulp. I staggered back, reluctantly, and caught up with Jenna outside, in floods of shaken tears.

* * *

"Is she gonna be okay?" Stefan asked as Elena and I emerged from the study after coming clean to Jenna.

"She's in shock." I informed him.

What else could we really expect? Being held at knife-point by one of the oldest vampires around masquerading as your boyfriend is not a great start to the day, by anyone's account, but then to have your nieces unload all of this bat-shit crazy truth on you as well...lets just say, Jenna was having a bad day. She was humming, and nodding, and not really saying much in response, but she'd stopped crying angry tears now, which was an improvement.

"Tried to tell her as much as we could, but barely scratched the surface." Elena said, with a heavy heart, "Didn't even get in to Bonnie, or Ro."

"Vampires 101 is probably about as much as she can take in right now." I uttered quietly.

"I'm so sorry. I hate this." Stefan sighed out.

"It's not your fault, Stefan. It's mine." Elena declared, "Anyway, I have to go back to Elijah."

Stefan and I widened our gaze in unison as she brushed past us.

"Wait? What? No! No." Stefan rasped, and grasped at her wrist to hold her back.

"Stefan, I promised him that I would return." Elena said, "I can't break that promise."

"Fine. Let me come." I implored to her, "I want my own answers."

"It's not the right time." Elena dismissed me.

"There is some weird connection with Elijah, that had me KO-ed for 3 days." I reminded her, "I'm tired of just waiting for the next shitty thing to happen to me. I need answers, Elena!"

"You'll get them. Just not right this minute." Elena assured me, "Stay here with Stefan. Keep an eye on Jenna."

"Where do you think you're going?" Damon demanded as he sauntered into the scene.

"Back to Elijah." Elena muttered.

"No." Damon seethed and slammed into her path.

"Get out of my way, Damon." Elena scorned up at him.

"If you so much as try and take a step out of this house-" Damon seethed.

"Damon, easy." Andie begged him.

"Stay out of this, Andie!" Damon snapped at her.

"Let her go." Stefan rasped.

"Are you kidding me?" Damon whined, "We just got her back!"

"You heard me." Stefan groaned, and snatched his brother's arm, "I said let her go."

"That's twice today you've stood in my way." Damon scorned, "I wouldn't try a third."

* * *

 **22:15 - Salvatore House - Damon's Bedroom**

"I need to talk to you." I said to Damon the second my sister sauntered out of his room.

I'd been loitering around waiting for him, and stepped into the bathroom, out of sight, at the sound of them both emerging, arguing back and forth. It wasn't entirely down to the desire to eavesdrop (considering that's the only way anyone finds out anything around here), I didn't want Elena to know I was here.

"Jesus." Damon scorned at my sudden appearance, "Little Gilbert, it's been a long night. Can your whining wait til the morn?"

"Touching speech." I scoffed, and received some semblance of his attention.

He'd basically professed his undying desire to protect my sister, whatever the cost, whatever it took; he didn't want to ally with Elijah, he wanted to toss Bonnie right into the firing line; his way was easier. It was quite awkward, considering she had this other guy, her equally strong Vampire Boyfriend, oh who was also his brother, who had the whole 'I love you so much I'd take a bullet for you' thing covered.

"What do you want?" He scorned.

"So Elijah and Elena are in cahoots. You and Bonnie were in cahoots, cooking up the whole fake-dead plan on your own." I noted.

"Yeah, sorry for not inviting you, but you are kind of a loose cannon." He scoffed, "Oh. No, wait, you were snoozing through the whole thing."

"I've got a plan of my own." I informed him.

"I am clinging to the edge of my seat." He replied, sarcastically.

"I think it's about time I died again." I stated plainly.


	30. Tomorrow's Problem

**Mystic Falls Memorial Hospital**

"Hey." Tyler uttered as he emerged from the hospital.

I froze in my stead and took him all in. My heart thumped inside my chest. He looked…better, taller maybe, like the weight of the world wasn't as heavy as before; he was carrying it better. He looked really good.

"Tyler?" I rasped out, and noticed who was in tow. My smile flopped as I muttered, "Jules."

"I'll give you a few minutes." Jules said and reiterated, "Just a few, Tyler."

"Yeah." Tyler drawled, "I got it."

Jules sauntered away into the car park, after giving me the filthiest look. I gave her my most radiant fake smile as she passed.

"She's just making sure I'm safe." Tyler scoffed and shoved his hands into his pockets, bracing himself for the awkwardness to ensue.

Don't get me wrong, I was also stewing in the whole running-into-your-ex awkwardness pot, but beyond that, I was more prickled with the fact he had ran off into the sunset with the woman who tried to kill us all that night, and then that other night!

"So…what are you two, like…friends now or something?" I asked, oh-so-elegantly.

"She's been helping me." Tyler shrugged and asked, "What're you doing here?"

"I heard about your mom." I told him and gestured over at the hospital for some reason, as if that information was new to him, "I just came to check in on her. I-I didn't know you were back."

"She's banged up, but she'll be okay. She'll be so happy you came. She loves you." He uttered, and I felt a little stab in the heart. I watched his eyes flicker away; I think he felt it too. There was so much in that sentence that neither of us wanted to unpack in that moment and so he glazed over it and asked me, "What's with the blonde?"

It took me a second to realise he was gesturing towards my hair, bundled up into a messy bun and distinctly no longer brunette. I exhaled and shook my head. Oh…that; last night's existential crisis. I told him, "I'll go with…fancied a change."

"And if you were going with the real reason?" He asked, extracting his hands and anchoring them on his hips.

He was being genuine. He wasn't calling me out for the fun of it, but I took a beat to decide what to say. We were standing just a few feet away from each other, in this hospital parking lot, but we were so far apart from where we used to be…and that idea was overwhelming me. It surprised me, how sad it made it me…I was probably always going to be attracted to him, sure, but in that moment, I just missed my friend…and so, I told the truth, "I wanted to do...something. I haven't felt in control of any aspect of my life for a really long time…and this was little, but it was something. And, it sounds really stupid out loud, but-"

"It felt good." Tyler rasped, and waited for me to nod, before saying, "I get it. It looks good. Different. But good."

"Thanks. How are you?" I asked him, "How is everything with you…and wherever you are?"

"I'm hanging in there." He replied simply.

I nodded and bit my lip before uttering, "Good."

"Yeah." He nodded and said, "I should get going. Jules and I need to get on the road."

He nodded one last time and then brushed past me. I scoffed and asked, "You're leaving again?"

He stopped and turned to face me, noting, "I left for a reason, Ro."

"Your explanation must have got lost in the mail, along with your goodbye." I said.

The intent was snarky, but the delivery let it down; the hurt trickled through.

Tyler exhaled slowly and eventually landed on, "Well…take care of yourself."

I watched him take a few more steps before shaking my head and calling out, "Tyler-AHHHHH!"

Someone had slammed their beefy arm around me and slammed something sharp into my neck. My eyes went a little blurry, but it didn't have the effect they had desired. I saw Tyler slam down onto his knees, clutching his temples in agony. I slammed my elbow into my assailant's gut and snapped his arm down onto my leg. He wailed out in agony, and I landed a fiery fist into his jaw, sending him slamming down onto the ground. Another witch chanted furiously behind me, and I felt my strength filter down…it was as though she was channelling me, taking it for herself, as Bonnie had before. I staggered and struggled against it until another witch slammed what I can only assume was a lead pipe across the back of my head.

* * *

 _Hey. Rosie?! Hey! You here?_

"Tyler?" I huffed out, and glanced around at the creepy-ass dungeon cave we were hanging out in.

"Are you alright?" He asked.

He was chained up on the opposite side of the wall, a fair distance away.

"Yeah." I rasped out, with difficulty, "I think so."

I glanced up at my own situation; I struggled against the chains and winced in agony, every slight movement came with a sharp sting of pain.

"I already tried." Tyler noted, "They did something to yours. Some spell. They thought you were a vampire."

"Yeah. I think they tried to vervain me." I told him, noting the familiar smell of the now dried liquid trickled down my neck from the first guy's botched take-down.

"Who were they?" He asked.

"I think they're with Klaus." I rasped and glanced up at the chains again. They some sort of aura hovering over their entirety, I couldn't even go for where they attached to the wall.

"Who the hell is Klaus?" Tyler asked and suddenly a light bulb went off in me; they thought they had captured a werewolf and a vampire.

"Tyler…you shouldn't have come back here." I muttered ominously, staring at the ground before me. I desperately wished I hadn't sussed it out.

"What?" Tyler rasped.

"They thought I was Caroline. The hair." I muttered and closed my eyes in anguish, to curse under my breath.

"Ro?" Tyler barked, "Answer? Any time soon?"

"The whole sun and moon curse is fake!" I told him, "That's what Elena learned from Elijah. Klaus still needs to do the sacrifice, but it's just not for that."

"And you think that's why he grabbed us?" Tyler asked, "For the sacrifice?"

"Yes." I said tersely.

"He's going to kill us?" Tyler asked.

"I think so. Yes." I said, and gestured up to my chains, "Well, judging by this, they know they still need a vampire."

"What did they grab?" Tyler asked, tersely.

He was watching me intently, waiting for the telltale signs of a lie.

"I'm not...I don't even freaking know at this point. I don't have a nice well-defined-in-pop-culture term for it. Let's just go with something inside the supernatural weirdo bracket, without the support group you guys get! There's loads of you, you're golden. There's one of me." I ranted.

"Doesn't matter anymore, right? This whole time I've been gone, Jules has been helping me come to terms with what I am." Tyler said, "How to deal with it. Complete waste of time. So don't even worry about it anymore."

"Why didn't you say goodbye?" I asked him, "You just left."

"You want to talk about this now?" He scoffed.

"Well, if we're going to die, I might as well know the truth." I said, "Is that why you left? You didn't want to be alone in it?"

"I knew you all hated me." Tyler said, "I thought you deserved better than having someone like me in your life."

"It hurt." I uttered, quietly, "You know, you turned your back on us when we needed you, but, I could never hate you, Tyler. I don't even know why I'm asking, if I found another...me, I would have done the same thing. I'd be outta here."

A sudden crash at the door cut off our conversation abruptly and eventually Damon emerged, followed by Caroline.

"Damon?" I rasped.

"I was about to say: sorry for the delay, I was dodging Blondie's boyfriend and his rifle loaded with wooden bullets, but I guess that sentence doesn't have the same impact anymore." Damon scoffed, and turned between Caroline and I, "Okay, Blondie, you can stay Blondie, and new Blondie, you can be Barbie!"

Aside from his snarky tone, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't relieved to see him.

"Matt knows about you?" I asked Caroline as she bent down to me.

"I didn't know, until right now-" Caroline uttered and winced as she broke the chains.

"Sh. He's knocked out. That is tomorrow's problem!" Damon sang above us.

"Her chains are freezing." Caroline noted seriously to Damon, and I sighed heavily as I caressed my wrists.

"They know about me." I admitted, as Caroline helped me to my feet.

"If _they_ know about you…then Klaus knows about you." Damon reiterated, and rolled his eyes in sheer annoyance, "Again, a problem for another day. Let's just get you out of here."

"Wait, Damon-no!" I said.

"I'm not leaving without him." Caroline scorned.

Damon sauntered over to Tyler and asked, "It's getting dark soon. How fast can you get the hell away from here?"

"I need to get to my family's cellar." Tyler told him, "I can lock myself up."

"I'll help." Caroline said.

"Don't make me regret this." Damon scorned and snapped his chains.

* * *

 **Lockwood Manor**

"Come on, get in!" Caroline barked and slammed the door shut behind us.

"Do you see anything?" I asked Matt, as he peered out through one of the windows.

I don't know how he could. It was pitch black outside, and Tyler's coat was just as dark. Matt shook his head.

"We're not safe here." Matt declared, "If that thing wants in, it's getting in."

"How did you even know what I was?" Caroline whined at Matt, abruptly, "I compelled you to forget!"

"I'm...gonna go check the back." I uttered and sauntered away quickly out of their way.

I may have been a room or two away, but I could still hear them both plain as day.

"I was on vervain." Matt informed her, "I faked forgetting so I could spy on you. It was your mom's idea."

"Wait, my mom knows?!" Caroline whined, "Oh my god, you told her! What did she say?"

"Your mom hates vampires. She grew up hating vampires. She'll probably always hate vampires." Matt said.

"Well, what about you?" Caroline asked.

"What about me?" Matt scorned.

"Where does this leave us?" She asked.

"Stuck in this house!" Matt barked back, "Trying to not get mauled to death by our friend."

* * *

"You don't think I killed him, do you?" Matt asked me.

"No." I told him, honestly, "It takes a lot more than wooden bullets to kill a werewolf. He's still out there somewhere."

Matt had fired a shot into Tyler, back at the Lockwood cellar. It kept him down long enough for us to escape and find refuge in the house. I rose off the couch and paced around the room in sheer frustration. No one was answering my texts. I had no idea how far along the creepy sacrifice plans had progressed; whether Klaus had discovered his missing elements. Nothing. I was going out of my mind. Damon had departed abruptly without a word; I could only assume shit had hit the fan.

"I can't stand this." I grumbled, "We can't do anything; we're waiting for a wolf that may or may not be miles away! I have no idea what's happening and everyone has gone radio silent all of a sudden!"

"They're probably just trying to keep you safe?" Matt suggested.

I stopped myself from screaming: they don't need to! I figured Matt had enough on his mind at the moment.

"You think he got Damon?" Matt asked and scoffed, "I mean, is that such a bad thing?"

"Yes." I scorned back, "I can't believe I just said that. But yes. There's so much bigger stuff at play here and I want Damon on our side, so yes I don't want our friend to murder one of our MVP's!"

"Do you think my mom wants to kill me?" Caroline asked, randomly.

"I don't think your mom knows what to do with you." Matt replied, honestly.

"Yeah, well, I don't really know what to do with me, either." Caroline muttered solemnly.

"What was that?" I asked, and noticed Caroline's ears had prickled too. There was a loud slumping sound outside.

"What?" Matt asked, "What is it?"

"Wait! Don't you dare shoot!" Caroline barked and snatched a blanket off the armchair.

"What the hell are you doing?" Matt asked.

She burst out of the front door and wrapped the blanket around Tyler, who was slumped on the porch, naked.

"Hey." She rasped in his ear, and I heard him whisper her name; he was fine.

The coast was clear; that was my cue to bolt.

* * *

 **Abandoned House - Witch Burial Ground**

Klaus had his back up werewolf, and he had his back up vampire...he had Jenna. I could feel a potent mixture of anger and sheer desperation broiling underneath the surface. All of my worst nightmares were coming into play all over again; two of my loved ones were waiting at the altar, and every second we spent hanging back in this creepy old house was pushing me over the edge. I was ready. I wasn't afraid.

"It's time." Elijah declared and everyone sprang into motion.

"I've got the weapons in the car." Alaric declared.

"Bonnie's the only weapon we need." Elijah declared.

Alaric slammed into absolutely nothing and groaned at the impact. I almost slammed straight into his back, but managed to stop in time.

"Bonnie." Alaric asked rapidly, "What is this?"

"I can't put anyone else at risk." Bonnie informed him, "I'm sorry."

"What? No! I'm not cannon fodder! I can help!" I scorned at her. NOT AGAIN. I am NOT trapped AGAIN.

"Please look after Jeremy." Bonnie implored me.

"Where the hell is Jeremy?" I groaned, and shot another cursory glance around the house; I could only assume he was in the basement.

"I can't stay here with Jenna out there!" Alaric barked at her.

"I'm sorry." Bonnie said with a defeated shrug; it was all she could say. She turned to leave with Elijah.

"You can't do this!" Alaric seethed at her, "Damon?"

"Sorry, buddy." Damon shrugged and said, "She's right. Sit tight, Barb."

"No, you can't do this!" I screamed back at her, "Bonnie!"

"BONNIE!" Alaric roared, "BONNIE!"

* * *

After a few futile attempts to punch through her ward I had begrudgingly accepted my fate. I was trapped.

"May I have a word, Rosanna?" Uncle John asked, and perched on the arm of the couch behind me.

I was staring vehemently out of the clouded window, through the hole I'd created by disturbing the dust. There hadn't been a flicker of movement, other than the light of the rising sun trickling through the forest floor. I turned away from my post for a moment, silently.

"You're a special kid." He said, and anchored his hands on his legs, braced for his own speech. I wondered whether I should brace myself too, but merely folded my arms across my chest in defiance. He continued, "Your dad always said so. He was a little vague on detail, but I know he meant it beyond the simple love and praise of a parent." I watched the man take a beat, and wrestle with his own conscience before elaborating, "He distanced himself from the Society a few years after you and Jeremy were born, and he never told me exactly why."

"What Society?" I asked him.

"The one from back in his College days; it was similar to the Council here. Listen, what I'm trying to say is, you kids were a game changer. He was stoic in his beliefs, as I was with mine, we were just raised that way. We stood for something...until we became fathers, and that trumped everything."

"You've been a father for what...2 days?" I noted, snottily.

Uncle John huffed out a small laugh and scratched his brow, "Alright. Maybe so."

"Does your story have a point?" I asked.

"It does." Uncle John said, "Grayson changed overnight, and I think he did that to protect you. I know you don't trust me, and I'm sorry about that; I wish a lot of things could have been different. But you know your dad loved you. I know you'll believe that. You need to grow up, fast, and stop being so naive, before you make damn sure that everything your father put in place to protect you was all for nothing."

Uncle John rose up and left me there, stewing in his lecture.

"So you're saying I should, what? Hide underground? Hide from what?" I scorned at him.

"Consider your gift. And then consider what might happen were it to fall into the wrong hands." He posed.

"I can't die." I uttered, darkly, "You're not scaring me."

"There are worse things you can do to a person...than just simply killing them." He rasped, monotonously, and then disappeared down the hallway, towards the basement.

* * *

"They're here!" I screamed down the staircase.

"How is she?" Jeremy asked, as Damon barged through, cradling Elena's lifeless body in his arms.

"I don't know yet." Damon rasped and placed Elena carefully down on the musty old sofa.

"What about Jenna?" Alaric asked, desperately.

Damon's shoulders fell, and that was answer enough. He turned hesitantly to face us.

"No." I whispered.

"I'm sorry." Damon rasped, and he shook his head.

"No." I cried out, again, so quiet it was barely audible.

Not again. My entire body shook as the reality before me set in. I wanted to scream; I wanted to run; I wanted to curl up in a ball and sob hysterically…all wrapped up into one. I felt my brother's arms pull me into a tired embrace, once again; we knew the drill...we were so good at this now. He rested his head on top of mine as we both struggled to hold back. Jenna...kind, hilarious, fierce, loving Jenna...I felt Alaric squeeze Jeremy's arm in solidarity.

Elena gasped violently and burst back into life. I pulled myself out of Jeremy's embrace for the next lap on the roller-coaster.

"Elena!" Damon barked in her face.

"What happened?" Elena babbled and looked around at everyone surrounding her, all looking distinctly broken.

"How do you feel?" Damon asked.

"I feel fine." Elena rasped.

We all held each other for a long time before Alaric eventually cleared his throat and proclaimed that we'd be happier at home. Happier…that seemed like such an alien term in that moment.


	31. Embellished Memories

**Mystic Falls Cemetery - 23:14**

The caretakers were compelled to bury Jenna with discretion. Jenna was 30. She didn't have any instructions or wishes, as she shouldn't have; she was so young; it was up to Elena now, to figure things out. We desperately felt Jenna's absence everywhere; she was the glue holding us all together; she was the one who dragged us through our terrible loss and brought us back to life. My sister, just shy of 18-years-old; she was the head of our family now.

Elena had placed a single rose for Jenna. She placed a rose for mom. She placed a rose for dad. Alaric placed a rose on Jenna's grave. Our friends consoled us and exchanged promises to help us out any way they could; they were kind, but their words floated around mid-air, and never really sunk in. I watched them. It felt like I was watching someone else's life. I wasn't really there.

A few more days had passed; I don't know how many. I stood at Jenna's headstone for a long time as the evening drew to a close. I stood alone, glancing back between her and my parents, and Uncle John...he had sacrificed his life for Elena's. That is the reason she lived. I took a sip of the bourbon bottle I had been nursing.

"Happy birthday to meeeee!" I sang and hiccuped and laughed maniacally. I flicked my wrist and looked at my watch. I nodded with a scrunched up expression and noted, "Okay, I'm like an hour early, but what the fuck, why not call it a day? I might not even make it to seventeen, the way us Gilberoonies are all checking out, one after the other, tick-tock, so you know...I'm being pragmatic!" I took another gulp and then chuckled, "I'm growing up, Uncle John, just like you told me tooo! Hahaaa! JOHN?! What the hell even was that? That weird Yoda moment, knowing you're gonna pop your clogs any minute now?! The hell was that about?! No heads up, huh?! Funny that whole, can't trust you thing, weird, wonder where that ever materialised from! Haha!"

I slumped on to the ground, in front of them, and flopped onto my back, letting the bourbon bottle bumble away from me.

"Do you know how much booze I had..." I blabbered, "I can't get drunk! Remember...haha, dad, remember when you ordered those _virgin_ pina coladas in mexico...and your Spanish was just _awful_...and, haha, me and Elena had like two sips and we were bouncing off the walls! Hahaha. Those were the days! I'm like...I'm putting Damon to...shamon here, seriously, no naked flames around me. Bad. Idea. OR. Maybe that's a great plan! Maybe I get stronger again, and then, maybe I don't feel like this anymore? Huh? Maybe. Big old buckets of maybes."

I sat up for a moment, and awaited the world to steady itself before I glanced over at the their headstones. I glanced around at the empty graveyard and a semblance of reality trickled through the drunken haze. I propped my head on to my fist, and sighed out heavily, "No. You're all still gone. I get colder. Great. But...doesn't change the gone bit."

I asked them, "So, life is to just move on, now, right?" I paused to huff out a sarcastic laugh before snapping, "That's all folks! We had the tea, and the cakes with the little fondant flowers on them." I pointed at my parents and scoffed, "Same ones from your funeral! Nice touch, Elena, you took notes on what worked, what didn't and whatnot! And that's it for us. World is turning even though ours ain't."

I snorted and suddenly felt desperately sad. My heart sank like a boulder in my chest and I shot my gaze up towards the darkening sky as I cried out, "After everything we've been through? That's all we get, huh? No goodbye. No chance for a goodbye…just...you finding out we lied to you and then...that's it. That's the end of our story?! I should have told you, Jenna, okay? That's on me. That was a bad call. I shouldn't have caved! And I can't give you the whole 'I was looking out for you' crap, I just...I could not articulate it! I know that now, because I still can't do that. But you could have been there for me…like you were relentlessly there for me!" I paced around anxiously, desperately driving the tears back, "Okay. We all messed up. We're all big bundles of mess. We make mistakes...we'll do better. I'm just sorry...and that's all I ever am...and I'm going to try my damnedest to not let you down again. I won't let any of you down again."

"You won't." Jeremy rasped, from behind me, "You never did."

I snapped my head around to find him. He was leaning against a tree, picking at a blade of grass.

"What are you doing here?" I asked him.

"I'm here for the show." He scoffed.

I stared back at him, sadly.

"And I figured...it was your turn, to fall apart." Jeremy said, "And my turn to try and hold it together for the both of us."

* * *

 **Mystic Falls Town Square - Gone With The Wind Screening Event**

"You brought me to see a girl movie." Jeremy sighed heavily.

"We had to get out of the house, Jer." Elena declared as she flapped out a blanket, "This is our 3-hour distraction from reality."

"Is that what we're doing?" I asked, "Pretending our lives aren't screwed."

"We need to do this, okay?" Elena dictated, "Breathe, eat, sleep, wake up and do it all over again until one day, it's just not as hard anymore."

"Hey! There you guys are!" Caroline sang and bumbled over with a basket, "Who's hungry?"

"Are we really doing this?" Jeremy asked with an eye roll.

"Yes, we are really doing this!" Caroline declared, "We are going to take a page from Scarlet. We made it through the war. I know you guys went through hell, and my mom knows I am a vampire, so basically, it's like Atlanta has burned. And yet, in spite of everything, we persevere."

"All right." I sighed, "What are we eating."

"Something good!" Caroline grinned and busted the basket open.

* * *

"All this waiting around for news is ruining Scarlet for me!" Caroline grumbled.

Stefan had made a sudden unscheduled appearance to relay some less than good news earlier on. Damon was bitten by Tyler as he was turning, that night...Damon was dying. Stefan was convinced that Klaus had a cure for a werewolf bite; he was Damon's only chance, his only hope. Elena took off abruptly to find Damon. She needed to find him now, to apologise for a fight they'd had, considering he might check out before she had a chance to made amends.

"Alaric." Jeremy spoke quietly into his phone, "Hey. No, she went to go see Damon, I thought that's where you were."

Jeremy shot to his feet and paced around, away from the movie. Caroline relayed every detail of the conversation to Bonnie and I: Damon was in a bad way, undoubtedly from the venom.

"If Damon is off the rails, there is nothing you can do to stop him." Bonnie implored Jeremy, and glanced back at Caroline, "Let us take care of it."

"Are you kidding me?!" I hissed at the two of them.

"You keep doing this!" Jeremy scorned, "You left me behind before, and guess what, Jenna still died. This is our sister. WE are going to find her!"

"You go ahead, and you try to stop us." I drawled in their face and stormed off after my brother.

I...uh, I didn't get very far.

"AH!" I hissed and clutched at my heart. I snatched on to Jeremy's arm and fell to my knees, groaning, "OH SHITTING HELL."

* * *

I blinked a couple more times until my eyes had adjusted to the brightness. Much to my delight, I wasn't greeted by Ignatius in the white-expanse of nothingness. I sat up on the chaise lounge; and looked down at myself, at my heart. No indication of anything, just as before. My outfit was unrecognisable, and that's what snapped the idea back into the forefront of my mind. The gorgeously light, flowing red dress told me all I needed to know.

I glanced around the room; a quaint old French-style lounge with delicate white wicker furniture and a grand piano drenched in sunlight from the floor-to-ceiling windows behind it. It was pristine. It was classic. I remembered this house faintly; I had been here before with...

I heard the rustle of paper outside, out on the veranda, and made my way towards it. I saw only the back of his head. Elijah was relaxing in the garden, perusing a newspaper, and sipping on an espresso. He didn't so much as flinch as I opened the French doors and wandered down the garden towards him. I surveyed the beautiful grounds of the walled garden as I walked at my leisure; the sound of the birds chirping away; the light breeze which gently ruffled the chiffon of my dress and relieved the work of the blazing sun; the relative silence from being so remote. I knew this was a memory of his; but was this place...real?

"Have you ever been to the French Riviera, Rosanna? Outside of my embellished memories?" Elijah asked, without raising his gaze from the newspaper.

"You can see me?" I uttered, monotonously.

"I know you are there." Elijah declared to me, "It is a nagging feeling that something is out of place."

"What? Can you hear me? You just bluffing?" I asked him, and waved my hands around.

"The stronger you get, the less I will affect you." Elijah declared, and began folding his newspaper neatly. He stared into the woodland, lining the bottom of the garden and suggested, "You need to get a message to your friends. You need another death to rise in strength, or you will be trapped here, indefinitely. I do not know how long I will be down this time. There is no pattern to Klaus. I don't wish to appear inhospitable, but I suggest you take a stroll along the riverbank. These intrusions are severely impeding on my serenity."

He flicked the newspaper down suavely, and sauntered back towards the house.

* * *

I didn't initially consider what it meant, the fact that he was standing here, in Elijah's memories...in purgatory. I was only relieved to see him there; he stood with his hands in his pockets, casually, dressed in a white linen suit; he looked exactly like dad in those photos from the 80's, the ones we had ripped into, and cried from laughter at.

"Jeremy?!" I cried out and rushed to embrace him, "Jeremy, what are you doing here?"

"Sheriff Forbes shot me." He rasped, and gestured to the massive blood stain now soaking through his suit.

"What?!" I screamed out and grasped at it.

Jeremy gestured not to, and shook his head. He groaned and caressed his chest, "Well...she wasn't exactly aiming for me."

It suddenly dawned on me, exactly what his presence here meant.

"Why are you _here_ , Jeremy?" I asked him, solemnly.

"I...I was worried about you; worried about you waking up and...finding out." He rasped, uncertainly, and glanced around at the river-side, "Figured you'd go totally off the deep end."

"Jeremy? What do you see?" I asked him.

"Uh...we're...we're in that abandoned house again? The basement? Why?" He said.

The light trickling through the treetops began to intensify.

I gasped as the blood stain in his chest started to clear up, "Wait, what?! What's happening? Stay the hell out of that light!"

"No. It's not heaven." He rasped, coolly, "I can hear Bonnie...and Ric."

"They're getting you back." I whispered, "Okay. Listen, we don't have much time. You need to burn my body."

"Okay, now I know I'm tripping." Jeremy scoffed.

"Jeremy!" I barked, and grabbed his arm, "I'm serious. I need to die. I need to rise again to beat this damn link with Elijah, who knows how long Klaus will keep a dagger in him. Jeremy!"

"I can't...kill my sister!" Jeremy roared.

"Tell Bonnie the witches want the house burned to the ground, they don't want her ever to return here and use them again. They want it done." I demanded, "Damon. He knows!"


	32. Summer

"Good morning, this is the office of Camp Director Tracy Milton, I'm looking to speak with Rosanna Gilbert. You were scheduled to arrive yesterday afternoon and classes start very early tomorrow morning, so we are just looking to confirm whether you are in fact on your way or if we need to make alternative arrangements to cover your classes. Please give us a call back on this number, either way, and I'm asked to remind you that your accommodation fee is non-refundable."

 **BEEP**

Elena: Rosanna?! It's Elena. There's a call from your Camp Director on the machine, asking if you're still coming up there? What the hell? You went a week ago. Where are you? Call me back when you get this!

 **BEEP**

Jeremy: Look, Ro, Elena's freaking out, big time. We just want to know that you're okay, that's all that you have to text me, literally just text me the letter K and that will be enough. Where did you go?

 **BEEP**

Caroline: Hey! It's Caroline! Can you take just one minute out of your mopey soul search to come to your sister's birthday? It's kind of a big one! Come on! You'll kick yourself in the butt if you miss it! Is your schedule seriously even that busy? Like, what are you even doing? People will ask so many questions if you're not back by Fall! I mean, hello! What about school? It's kind of compulsory you know! I can't compel everyone in town to just forget about you, or believe you went to college early or something-

 **BEEP**

Damon: Your pain-in-the-ass sister is getting all the more stubborn and stupid and reckless in her pursuit of our friendly neighbourhood ripper, you know the one! That vampire with his morality switch firmly off? Look, I'm all for the checking-out, throw caution to the wind, piss off without a trace thing; I'm a huge advocate of that, I invented that! But Alaric is 90% bourbon half the time, Jeremy's…of no use to me at the best of times, and I can't help wondering why I'm doing all the heavy lifting here?! She's your pain-in-the-ass sibling, I have my own! I wouldn't mind a little back up here, Barbie…least let her know you're okay, yeah? Tick one thing off the list, before she totally implodes."

 **BEEP**

Jeremy: Hey, it's me...again. You missed Elena's party. Caroline's pissed. Reason I'm calling isn't that, it's…there's something I want to talk to you about, just not on the phone, yeah? No pressure to come back, no guilt-trip, just call me, I need to ask you about something, see if it's happening to you too.

* * *

 _Dear Mom,_

 _I can almost see your disappointed face whenever I close my eyes, and I can explain. I didn't ignore Jeremy's last message, okay? I had to respond to it. There was something about his tone that just wasn't sitting right with me. I told him to confide in Elena, whatever it was; she was right there and she'd be able to help him. I couldn't come back yet. He told me that whatever the hell I was up to, I didn't have to do it alone. I told him I was following up on a lead Elijah had given me whilst I waited around in his French Riviera limbo. Stefan had laid out a road map of all of Lexi's hideouts across the country, long before he jumped overboard and landed on the SS Klaus, back when he was helping me figure things out. Basically, I would be home soon. He shouldn't worry._

 _My voicemail is now officially full; I don't know if Jeremy has spread the word that I am fine, but no one could leave me another message even if they wanted to. I have the peace and the solitude I need to...figure things out. I'm not making great strides here. I keep running through all the 'what ifs', and what you would say if you were here with me. Would any of this even be happening if you were still here? I know I can't think like that. I need to stick to what I know._

 _I know I am stronger. I can feel it, all the time. With every death...it's like I've levelled up. But my mind hasn't hardened like before._ _I think that's because of Jenna, and John. I know that my friends want to protect me, and I them, but...wanting is not enough. We all wanted to protect Jenna; Jenna died. And I'm afraid. I am afraid of John's words, of attracting the wrong attention, of those even worse than Klaus, and I am afraid of not being able to control this new power. So...I left. I had to._

 _You were totally wrong about this, by the way. The whole 'write out a letter with everything that you feel and don't send it' thing is not helping. So, this is my last letter to you. It's headed for the fire pit, with the others._

 _I'm sorry. I tried._

 _All my love, Annie_

* * *

I noticed that the red flag on Lexi's mailbox was now pushed upright. I was confused. Who was sending mail to a dead vampire? There was no one around for miles. I pulled out a small packet addressed to me…at my home address. Okay. Creepy. You can't reach me by phone, but you can snail-mail me at my temporary hideout that only two 'living' people know about? I knew Stefan was old-school, but he wasn't...weird. He would've rang the doorbell, and he was completely consumed with doing Klaus' bidding, last I checked.

It was an invitation: Please join the Mikaelson family tomorrow evening at 7 o'clock for dancing, cocktails and celebration. On the back of the card it read: _Rosanna. I believe it to be in your best interest to attend, and meet my mother, and for all intents and purposes, your creator. Although our connection has diminished somewhat over time, there is still a clouded feeling of unrest that cannot be shaken. You will get answers, and you will get them from the source. Elijah._

* * *

I sat on the back porch of Lexi's South Georgia home that night with the invitation skirting between my hands. I patted the paper in the palm of my hand. How much more could I really stand to gain from solitude? My leads had ran dry. I had my new party tricks more or less down. The charcoal frame of the former barn quietly creaked in the warm midnight breeze; the scent of burnt wood washing its way over the grounds. I held the invitation out before me in my left hand, and raised the right beside it. With a slow click of my fingers the corner of the invitation smouldered and spat out a small flame. I watched the dancing light consume the invitation, and threw it into the roaring fire pit before me at the very last moment.


	33. One Dance

A maid greeted me cordially, by my full name, and took my coat from me. After that, I was plunged straight into the bustling gathering inside the palatial home. Everyone was dressed to impress in sharp tuxedos and glittering ballgowns, mixing together, enjoying the string quartet playing in the back ground. Fairy lights were littered on everything; the grand staircase, the columns, the window dressings, everything and everyone was sparkling. Waiters were dispersed throughout the foyer handing out canapes, compliments and champagne. It was mesmerising; it outshone anything I'd ever experienced at the Lockwood Manor; previously the pinnacle of fancy-pants events in Mystic Falls.

"Where's your chaperone?" Stefan asked as he offered his arm to me, politely.

I was a little taken aback, but accepted his offer and sighed out, "Last I heard you ran off into the sunset with Klaus."

"That's a little rich coming from you." Stefan noted with a smirk, "Minus the psychopathic company."

I rolled my eyes and we explored the sprawling mansion further; my floor length burgundy chiffon dress swished and flowed lightly. Once again, I was lost in the glamour of it all. We made our way further in to the party, acknowledging the guests we knew.

"A drink, perhaps? To settle in." Stefan suggested.

My flickering eyes settled upon his once again and I asked, "It's that obvious?"

Stefan scoffed and shook his head. He said, "No. I just know you. You're helping yourself to her wardrobe now, too?"

I glanced down at Lexi's beautiful dress, and wavered.

"She'd be glad it's seeing the light of day." Stefan declared, and his tone lightened, "Remind me to tell you who she stole that dress from…and how."

I laughed, and said I'd hold him to that. My heart was granted one more beat following another sip of champagne, and then there she was. It was as if she had her own homing beacon; she'd hunted me down through the crowd.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Elena scorned into my ear.

I turned around to face both Elena and Damon. She looked absolutely stunning in her glittering ball gown; her scowl on the other hand…

"Small world." I uttered back into my champagne glass.

"Nice tux." Damon said, nodding to his brother.

The corner of Stefan's mouth flickered in response. The tension was palpable and stifling. Elena squirmed in her spot between them, and for a single moment forgot about her belittling agenda. I didn't need any help filling in the blanks from my absence; it was painfully clear that the inevitable had come to a head; something had happened between Damon and Elena.

"We all need to leave. This was a bad idea." Elena said to me.

"Okay, bye. _I'm_ going nowhere." I declared.

"Ro. _I'm_ serious." Elena hissed.

"And _I_ was invited. It would be rude to bail now." I replied tersely.

"We are attracting attention." Damon muttered melodically.

"It doesn't matter, we're going." Elena hissed.

"Try it." I uttered back, with my glare deeply fixed into hers, unwavering, "Go on."

"Why don't we compromise?" Caroline suggested, abruptly stepping into the conversation, "We should all start a buddy system and everyone needs to revel within in hollering distance of each other, okay?"

I rolled my eyes, almost audibly.

"You're not leaving any of our sights, Rosanna. I'm serious. Whatever the hell you think you're here for. It's not happening. You don't even realise what you've walked into." Elena scorned at me.

"Great talk. I need to visit the ladies room now. If I have your permission?" I snapped back and stormed off.

I felt the swift brush of air rustle my curled hair and the light fabric of my dress.

"Okay, it's coming out as super oppressive, and like, parental, but she missed you so much this summer, and she was so worried about you, you were gone for so long, so don't be mad at her, or take it all to heart." Caroline rambled as she followed me towards the bathroom, "Where have you even been? We have so much to catch up on. Did Klaus send you a princess ball gown too? It's so weird, right? My skin hasn't stopped crawling since."

* * *

"Rosanna Gilbert, I presume?" Someone asked.

I turned to face a tall, ridiculously handsome man smiling cordially back at me. He handed a glass of champagne over and introduced himself formally, "I'm Finn Mikaelson. You're here to see my mother."

"Is-is she here?" I asked, glancing around over my shoulder at the house littered with illustrious guests.

"Her request did not include your friends." Finn reminded me.

"I know. They're…protecting me." I stated and took a sip of the champagne.

" _You_ don't need protecting." Finn replied, with a raised brow, "If you want to see my mother, you'll need to be alone."

"Pfft. I'm working on it." I muttered under my breath.

"Uh, if everyone could gather, please." Elijah declared.

"Excuse me." Finn nodded politely and sauntered over to join his family.

"Welcome. Thank you for joining us." Elijah addressed the crowd from the grand staircase, "You know, whenever my mother brings our family together like this, it's tradition to commence the evening with a dance. Tonight's pick is a century's old waltz. So, if all of you could please find yourselves a partner. Please join us in the ballroom."

Elijah proceeded to lead his guests through to the ballroom. I started to follow his direction but caught Esther ascending the grand staircase, away from the bustling crowd below. I made a move to follow her, but of course, Esther wasn't the only one being watched like a hawk.

"Don't even think about it." Elena scorned in my face.

"She wants to see me alone." I scorned back.

"Well, it sucks to be her, then." Elena scoffed.

"I'm just going to talk to her." I said.

"This isn't some school yard tussle with Damon. Okay? Esther has already tried to kill me once." Elena hissed.

"Well, funnily enough, everything's not always about you, Elena." I scoffed, "And, oh my god, major wave of déjà vu, we've done this so many times! Esther has answers for me. I'm going to hear her out."

"Says who? Her? You're pen pals now? Esther gets the address of wherever the hell you're hiding out, and I don't?" Elena hissed.

"Elijah said." I said, "And I trust him."

"Based on what? Your weird sire bond thing, that you're sort of sure isn't really there anymore? I'm not taking chances. I didn't take chances with Jeremy. I'm not taking any chances with you."

"What do you mean by that?" I asked.

"You have weird new gifts that we don't totally get yet-"

"Because we've been firmly stuck on you, and whatever the hell is happening with you. It's always about you, Elena-" I barked back.

"We need to dance, we're getting eyes." Damon muttered to us.

"Like I care!" Elena barked back at him.

"God. Little Gilbert, just give us a heads up before you walk into a Lion's Den." Damon said, "That's all she's saying."

"Why?" I scorned back, "So, that you can stop me?"

Elena hissed "Yes!" and Damon hissed "Duh!" in unison.

"Would you honour me, with the first dance, Rosanna?" Someone requested.

I sighed sharply and turned to see another ridiculously handsome fellow extending his hand out to me. It didn't take a genius to deduce another Mikaelson was before me; it seemed I'd be collecting the whole set this evening.

"Care to introduce yourself first?" I responded back tersely.

"Kol Mikaelson." He smirked, "Forgive my lapse. I wanted to snap you up, something tells me you'll be in high demand tonight."

"And why might that be?" I asked.

"Ro." Elena scorned behind me.

"Your startling beauty, of course." Kol scoffed, "And that dress is doing you so many favours."

"Is it really appropriate for a thousand-year-old man to be hitting on a seventeen-year-old?" I scorned and sauntered away.

Before I'd blinked, he was back before me.

"One dance." Kol rasped and stared deeply into my eyes. I suddenly realised, this meant I was no longer opposed to the idea. He noted, "It could be considered rude, to deny the host one single dance."

"One dance." I uttered, with a searing glare back at him.


	34. It's My Duty, And Yours

Elena and Damon had taken their position directly behind us. Elena breathing down my neck wasn't my biggest concern. My eyes were glued to the unsettling pairing a few couples down from us; Caroline twirled around the ballroom with Klaus. I felt a sudden wave a nausea ripple throughout my entire body as she smirked at whatever he'd just whispered to her. How can she stand it? I felt a flicker of familiar rage spark inside my chest as my mind burrowed further into my hatred for Klaus.

"You're quite the dancer." Kol whispered into my ear.

My eyes snapped back on to him, after I took a deep breath to suppress the overwhelming anger.

"It's kinda sad." I uttered back, glaring into his eyes.

"Excuse me?" He smirked with a peaked brow.

"You can't get a girl on to the dance floor without compelling her to be there." I said.

He thought for a delighted moment and then spun me in his arms, just as the slow monotonous waltz had dictated.

"You clearly aren't." Kol uttered back, with a devilish smile creeping further across his face, "So it must be something else then."

"Hmm. Perhaps a mere desire not to piss off your mother before our meeting." I replied without thinking.

"A meeting you say?" Kol asked and abruptly pulled me closer into him, much closer than the civilised waltz warranted.

My heart skipped a beat, and he'd clearly heard it. His brow flinched in response.

"Are you afraid of me, Little Phoenix?" He asked me, closely.

I glared up at him. The progressive nature of the dance spun me straight into Stefan's arms. I instantly felt a wave of relief and security inside his embrace, with enough room to berate myself for letting anger cloud my judgement.

"Are you alright?" He asked me.

"I need to talk to you." I whispered in his ear.

"So talk." He whispered back.

"Not here." I whispered and grasped his hand, leading him outside.

* * *

I led Stefan outside into the grounds of the mansion.

"Elena won't let me out of her sight, I can't even go to the bathroom without a bodyguard." I explained to him, "Caroline said something about Esther secretly being on our side. We need to know, if that's the case."

"Why are you telling me this?" Stefan asked.

"I'm gonna take a tiny leap and assume killing Klaus is at the top of your priority list, so-what? Am I wrong?" I asked him.

"No, you're not wrong." Stefan said, "What do you want me to do?"

"Keep Elena, Caroline and Damon all away from me, for like two seconds." I implored him, "Let me see Esther alone. Let me do this."

"You sure you can handle it?" He asked.

"Stefan…not you too." I sighed.

"Okay." He agreed.

* * *

I paced around the den, fiddling with knickknacks here and there, playing with my hands, glancing at the clock on the mantel; only two minutes had passed.

"I got your text, Little Gilbert. What are we doing in here?" Damon asked.

Stefan immediately fell from the rafters and snapped Damon's neck in one harsh twist. His body kissed the ground with the elegance of a sack of potatoes; I stumbled back into the desk in surprise, sending a knickknack or two scattering.

"Well, better hurry up." Stefan said, casually, brushing the dust from his tux, "Won't be down for long."

"I assume you have something a little subtler planned for Elena?" I scoffed.

"Go." He rasped, with a roll to his eyes, "Be careful."

* * *

I left the den, and made a swift turn up the corridor; I glanced around again, unsure I was headed the right direction. I came to an abrupt stop after I almost smacked into Elijah. He held me before him until certain I was alright.

"Rosanna, it is good to see you, outside of France." Elijah declared.

"And you." I said, "Thanks for letting me hang there."

"Might you follow me? I wish to converse somewhere more secluded." Elijah requested, and placed his hand on the small of my back to lead me around the corner, to an alcove. He brushed a hand through his hair, pensively, and then after a squint, he revealed, "I supported my mother's request to see you in good faith."

"And let me guess, that faith was misplaced?" I said monotonously.

"I do believe that she can provide you with at least some of the answers that you crave." Elijah explained, "It is her ability to forgive my brother after everything he's done to destroy this family that strikes me as a little strange to say the least."

"Do you think it's an act?" I asked him.

Elijah waited for a giggling couple to saunter down the hall way, before admitting, "It has me asking questions I never thought I'd ask."

"So, she has more in mind than just story time." I uttered.

"Can I depend on you to tell me what she says?" He asked.

His eyes did not dance between mine as he awaited a response. Elijah always had a stoic balanced expression. I knew now the bond between us had wavered, as I could summon a lie or command myself to walk away with ease if I so wished. It would be an odd response, but it would be mine. I didn't feel compelled to do either. I trusted him. I wanted his help, and I wanted to give mine.

"Of course." I said, "I'll find you later, okay?"

* * *

I knocked on the door, and mere moments later Finn appeared.

"You're alone." Finn declared and stepped aside to invite me in, "Wise choice."

"It's only sage." Esther noted to me, as she waved a sprig of smouldering sage around the room, "I've spelled it so that we may speak freely without fear of being overheard. That'll be all, Finn. Thank you." Esther waited for her son to disappear before continuing, "You must have a million questions for me, Rosanna. Please."

She gestured to the couch, and invited me to sit down next to her.

"How are you alive?" I asked her, "Are you a ghost or-?"

"Not exactly." Esther said, "When I died, the witch Ayana preserved my body with a spell. She was a close friend of mine, an ancestor of your friend, Bonnie. Together with her mother, they complete the Bennett Bloodline. I drew power from them and their ancestors who were with me on the other side."

"So, you've been on the other side for a thousand years?" I asked her.

"Nature's way of punishing me for turning my family into vampires." Esther explained, "But there is a way for me to undo the evil I created."

"You're going to help kill Klaus, aren't you?" I asked.

"One thing at a time, Rosanna." Esther said, "For now, I simply need your help."

"I upset the balance of nature by turning my children into vampires. I sought a way to protect them from the werewolves." Esther said, "But in no time at all, they began to feed on human blood. They ravaged the town with no remorse. Eventually, Niklaus turned against me. I have watched on for a thousand years at the death and destruction my actions have caused; I watched my son take the life of your aunt Jenna, whilst Elena stood there, helpless; he saw nought but his own gain. There is no forgiveness for them. Whatever my good intent may have been in the beginning, it was not worth producing such evil."

"How are you gonna kill Klaus?" I asked, "He's immortal."

"It will take time, magic, and your assistance." She stated.

"What do I have to do with it?" I asked.

"My children believe I'm holding this ball to celebrate our reunion. But in truth, I've gathered them together to perform a ritual. The first step requires blood from which they were created. Only a drop. Its essence will be in the champagne toast later on this evening." She picked up a blade from the table, and then presented it to me, "Will you do it? Or shall I?"

I didn't think twice; I didn't skip a beat. I presented my hand to Esther, and she pricked the end of my finger. The drops of my blood plopped into her prepared chalice.

"How many times have you died, Rosanna?" She asked.

"Twice, by fire." I said.

"You technically haven't, ever. You will continue to regenerate, and you will not die until it is the right time. You will not feel the pull towards Elijah as much, I trust?" She said.

"Wait, what?" I blurted out, "What do you mean by the right time?"

"Until you are no longer needed. I am not privy to the timeline." Esther stated, "You are sent here to protect your element, to do your element's bidding, and only when it is satisfied that you've left this world a better place are you permitted to ascend out of servitude. You do not die. You suffer, you live, you feel as any other creation on this good green Earth feels, but...you are not one of them. You are a servant. You are bound to the element from whence you came. Did you not wonder how you haven't questioned trusting me? You know good, and you know my intent."

I paused for a moment and then asked, "I'm not following? You are telling me that some otherworldly mojo smouldering from a cigarette butt is controlling me? What am I?"

"Guardian. Angel. Servants of the Light. Take your pick." Esther replied, "You are not Rosanna Gilbert. You are not a simple backwater American teenager. You are given this idea to ground you, to prevent you from going _another_ way, as some have chosen to go before you."

"Elijah said that you made the elements into people." I said, "And then you slaughtered them, and it was from their blood that you created vampires."

"No. I called down the Angels." She said, "And I did as you say. I killed them, and in response, we have the next iteration. It is a more...fluid entity, more robust, and more discrete, you don't have the wings and the light shining out of your arse anymore."

"Who is Ignatius? He said he was the _Phoenix_ before me? Why does he appear to me so randomly?" I asked.

"I do not know of this man. I only know of the first iteration. What else do you want to know? We are short on time."

"You said it decides when I'm done? Done with what? What do I have to do?" I asked.

"You are sent when it is pertinent to do so. There can be long stretches without Angels roaming the Earth. There must have been a reason. I'm not privy to it." Esther stated, "Although my best guess would be something to do with my family causing a fuss again. I appreciate that you have been living in a darkened state of confusion for a while now, I trust that my answers have given you some semblance of resolution."

"Yes. It's still wild, but...it's something." I said.

"I'm glad. Our time has come to an end for now. We must return to the matter at hand. Elijah is more suspicious than the others, so he may need more persuasion. You must really sell it to him, assure him that our discussion tonight has helped you greatly, and all is well. It is imperative that they all drink at the toast in order to be linked as one."

"W-what do you mean linked as one?" I asked her.

"You said yourself, Klaus can't be killed." Esther said, "But tonight's spell links all of my children together so that if one goes, they all go."

"What?" I huffed out.

"I love my family, Rosanna, but they are an abomination." Esther said, "I betrayed nature when I created them. It's my duty, and yours, to kill them."

* * *

I returned to the party, lost in my own thoughts, going over everything that Esther had just shared with me. I have some sixth sense for honest intentions? I wasn't so sure; I could easily link my eagerness to go along with her plan with my sheer hatred for Klaus. It wasn't that far of a stretch. I occupy this element until I've ticked off enough acts of service? How much is enough? By whose standards? If I fart around and drag my feet will I still be knocking about at 500-years-old? Maybe I should ask Ignatius that during my next fever dream? What's the life expectancy in this role? My mind was whirring. This is the only way to kill Klaus? This is the only way to avenge Jenna?

"So, how was my mother?" Elijah asked me.

I was staring out into the crowd of bustling guests for so long. I flinched a little at being sharply snapped back to reality, and especially by him.

I cleared my throat and uttered, "Intense."

"And for what reason did she need to speak with you in private?" Elijah asked, and handed me over a glass of the champagne being dished out.

Esther descended down the stairs, elegantly, and accepted her own glass of champagne from Finn. She glanced over at me coolly, and then surveyed her guests.

"Rosanna?" Elijah said, awaiting my full attention, he then asked, "Should I be concerned about my mother's intentions?"

"She just wanted to apologise, for trying to have Elena killed." I lied through my teeth, and added, "She hoped the answers she gave me would be a productive first step towards burying the hatchet."

"You got what you wanted?" He asked, and I felt a small stab to the heart as he looked directly into my eyes.

I did get what I wanted, yes, because of you, because of your unrelenting concern for me.

"Yes. She said tonight is only beginning." I told him, "She'll help me master control."

"So, it's true, then?" He asked, with a small genuine smile starting to show, "She's forgiven Klaus?"

"It's true." I said, and mirrored his smile.

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, waiters are coming around with champagne. I invite you all to join me in raising a glass." Esther announced to her guests, "It provides me with no greater joy than to see my family back together as one." My heart sank at her word choice, and thumped deeply in my chest. She smiled so widely at the gathering before her, as she raised her glass, "I'd like to thank you all for being a part of this spectacular evening. Cheers."

The crowd raised their glasses to Esther, and a chorus of CHEERS! erupted throughout the foyer. Elijah turned to me, and offered his glass to clink with mine. I did it. This was the price. This was the only way. The end of Klaus was in reach. Our glasses touched. And I froze. I followed him. He raised his glass to his lips. No. I couldn't.

"No. Uh-" I huffed out, and grabbed his glass out of his hand, "There's uh, there's a stain on the glass."

Elijah stared back at me quizzically, as I dumped his glass on the passing waiter's tray, and it disappeared into the crowd. I revelled at the sight of Esther's poison, born of my blood, travelling further and further away from him. I had no time to enjoy the relief. One heartbeat later, Finn had flashed back into our conversation, and presented his brother with another glass of tainted champagne.

"Here you are, brother." Finn said, and clinked his glass against Elijah's. He joined his brother, in another celebratory sip, and then he bore his eyes into mine.


	35. It Is That Simple

The evening was called to a premature end by Kol trying to crush Matt's hand, Damon rugby-tackling Kol off a balcony, and then snapping his neck for good measure. After a little airing of their laundry to the gathering, Elena ran into the night after Damon, closely followed by Caroline for protection. Elena had barked at Stefan to get me home as she sprinted off. So, a standard dramatic end to a formal affair in Mystic Falls.

Stefan had been treated to a play-by-play of my encounter with Esther on the drive back. I opened the front door of the house and stepped inside. Stefan followed me in and closed the door gently behind us. I glanced around the still room, and felt a wave of unease. This hadn't felt like home in a while. I hadn't been back here since another of those living under its roof had left us. It felt...sad.

"So, uh, Esther wants to kill her whole family." Stefan scoffed lightly, breaking the silence, "How's that for mother of the year?"

"Yeah." I rasped, sadly, "and I got to look Elijah right in the eye and lie to him about it."

"Well, good." Stefan said, "Can't say I'll be sorry to see any of them go."

My brow wrinkled and I turned to face him. I said, "I just signed their death sentences, Stefan."

"No." He said strongly, "You signed Klaus' death sentence, Rosanna. Everyone else is just collateral damage."

I sighed heavily, and said, "It's not that simple."

"That family has brought your family nothing but darkness." Stefan reminded me coarsely, "It _is_ that simple."

"What was with Damon going after Kol like that?" I asked him.

"Damon being self-destructive." He said with a shrug. He looked over at my unwavering expression and admitted, "I said something I didn't mean."

"Something Elena-related?" I asked.

A small flicker of a smirk flashed across his mouth, and he rasped, "Good night, Ro."

I watched him disappear out of the front door, but I couldn't let it go.

"Stefan." I rasped, and held on to the door, "How do you do it?"

"Do what?" He sighed, and shoved his hands in his pockets nonchalantly. _That_.

"Act like you don't care? Like nothing about tonight fazed you? Like you don't feel anything?" I asked him, and sauntered over to him, "Because I can't do that. I feel. I feel everything. I'm supposed to be above this, I'm supposed to be some kind of 'champion of the light', and I am...drowning in guilt. I tried to stop Elijah. But I didn't really try that hard. So, I need you to tell me...how to be a robot like you."

Stefan released a heavy sigh and said, "You've missed a lot this summer."

"I haven't missed anything." I informed him and stood before him, "I've had daily voicemails from pretty much everyone filling me in on all the crap I've missed and begging me to come back and fix everything."

Stefan smirked, and he mocked me, "You _love_ being needed like that, don't pretend otherwise. It's like crack to someone as empathetic as you."

"I know _everything_ Stefan." I informed him, and folded my arms harshly as I spoke, "I know all about-"

"Yeah. I don't need a recap. I lived it." Stefan snapped back and stepped closer towards me, "What I don't get, and what I'm a little annoyed by, is the fact I gave you an out, and you threw it back in my face. You came back. You could be in the wind by now."

"I'm here for precisely the same reason you are...to protect the people I love." I said.

"That famous Gilbert optimism, never disappoints." Stefan scoffed, "Just remember, when this all goes down the wrong way, when Klaus figures out what you are and uses you, hurts more people you love, you remember, that I gave you another option."

"Since when are you an advocate of running away? And just throwing your hands up in the air and going oh well, best of luck loved ones! I'm just looking out for number one! This mopey stone wall act doesn't suit you!" I groaned.

"What? You think I want to be this person? I was protecting you and now, I'm protecting myself! I hurt Elena. I bit her. I hate myself for what I did." Stefan scorned, "If I let myself care, all I feel is pain."

* * *

"Did you find Damon?" I asked after watching Elena slam the front door shut and lean her head against it.

"No…I didn't." She uttered, embarrassed I'd seen her display.

She came over to me. I was wrapped up under a blanket, in my pyjamas, watching The Bachelor reruns.

"What happened with him tonight? Why'd he blow up like that?" I asked halfheartedly, and to my surprise, received a simple, honest response.

"He said that he loved me. I said 'maybe that's the problem'." Elena said as she sat down on the couch next to me and tucked herself up under my blanket too.

She was still decked out to the nines in her glittering ball gown; she rustled as she nestled in.

"Oh." I uttered, "I'm guessing you didn't mean that?"

"No." She sighed.

"You're doing this whole honesty thing, it's really throwing me off." I said.

"I've exhausted everything else." She said, with a shrug, "Let's go with simple, no holds barred, honesty."

"Where's Jeremy?" I asked her.

"Klaus compelled him to walk out into traffic, so I sent him away. He's in Denver." She said, "I thought it would be safer, until we kill Klaus."

"Okay." I said, and winced as I told her, "This house is extra weird and empty without him."

"Tell me about it. I'm basically living at Caroline's." She said, "But...if you're back-"

"I'm back." I told her, "I uh...I just needed some time to digest everything...with Jenna, and-then being down again-"

"You don't have to explain it." Elena assured me, "I dealt with Jenna's death by completely burying myself in trying to find a guy that didn't want to be found, and then saving a guy who didn't want to be saved."

"He wanted to." I uttered, "I think he still does. It's just going to take some time. And...I think, judging on tonight's display, maybe _you_ need some time to digest everything that's happened to _you_. You know? You need to drown out everything and everyone else, and just think about what you want. Not what you should be doing, or who needs you more, or...just nothing, nothing else. I think you'll feel better."

"When did you get so wise?" She asked.

I shrugged and said, "I'm just making this up as I go along."

"You and me both." Elena laughed.

I huffed out a laugh and suddenly felt incredibly nostalgic, just sitting under a blanket with my sister and talking. Our days were significantly more eventful and difficult, and dramatic than they had been before, but here we were, once again. The words simply fell out of my mouth, as the pure and honest truth often does.

"I don't wanna fight with you. I don't want to be like this anymore." I said, and struggled to fight back the tears, "I really miss us."

"You mean...like, back when the world wasn't falling apart around us?" Elena rasped and became emotional too.

I nodded and said, "Yeah. Back when we weren't total assholes to each other all the time."

Elena scoffed and agreed, "I think we get a pass. We can be better, but...we both get a pass up 'til now."

"Okay." I said, "I need to tell you everything that Esther said."


	36. That's Not Us

"Natalie's home tomorrow, you know?" Adam said, "She'll be expecting a full report on whereever the hell you've been all summer."

I cocked my head to the side and leant against my pool cue, tickled at how he was privy to what Natalie was expecting. He caught my eye and huffed.

"Okay, so…we've maybe been seeing each other again." Adam laughed and took his shot.

I laughed with him and didn't try all that hard to stifle it.

"Yeah. She'll get it." I told him, "It wasn't all that exciting though, just visiting family in Denver. Jeremy's staying up there."

"You had to go radio silent for that?" He asked.

"It's up in the mountains." I said, "I guess, uh, after Jenna…we just needed some time."

"Okay, I'll tell her to take it down a notch when she sees you." He offered.

I thanked him, genuinely. My phone rattled away on the chair once more and stole our attention again. Adam laughed and told me I could answer it, it's The Grill, not the Library.

"If it's the same person, I still don't want to talk to them." I admitted, "Actually, I never want to talk to them, and they should know that by now."

"Better turn it off then. They're not giving up." Adam laughed.

I rolled my eyes and scorned into my phone, "What?"

"Oh, there she is! Hey, sorry to disturb you, your sibling is currently captive, and we could use an extra set of hands?! Elijah took Elena. She's under _Rebekah's_ watchful eye. He figured out what you and his Mommy Dearest did. And Elena filled in the gaps. I'd say your guilt trip got to her, but I can't be sure, she's just as sappy as you!" Damon informed me rapidly, "We need you to distract Kol, he's at the Grill."

"Yes. I can see that." I scorned as Klaus and Kol entered the building, "Klaus too."

"Blondie has Klaus. Keep Kol at the Grill until Alaric gives you the nod. He'll do the rest. Okay?! You have your orders." Damon barked and hung up abruptly.

I caught Alaric's gaze, he was at a table with Meredith Fell. We exchanged a knowing look as I tucked the phone into my back pocket and began racing through my options. The Grill was packed tonight, so ideally, we kept the innocent bystanders to a minimum. No force. How am I going to keep this ass here? As if on cue, Kol was before us.

"Leave, Runt. She's way out of your league." Kol declared and compelled Adam to leave the Grill.

"Wh-Adam?!" I scoffed as Adam dropped his pool cue immediately and sauntered straight out of the building, without taking any of his stuff.

"You are welcome, darling." Kol sighed and leant against the pool table next to me.

I sighed heavily, propped my own cue against the table and turned to head for the door but slammed straight into Kol's chest. His hands loitered on my arms. I staggered back out of them and scorned up at him, "You've brought my evening to an abrupt end, do you mind?"

"I don't mind at all." He grinned and noted, "You know, we never got another dance in back at the party."

"Right, because you got your neck snapped." I rasped, patronisingly.

"One drink?" He shot back.

"No." I seethed.

"One drink, and _I_ shan't snap the bartender's neck." Kol sang as I stormed past him, "Hey, don't look like that, you inspired me."

I glared back at him and bit my cheek, figuring it was a safe bet that he wasn't one to make empty threats. He'd crushed Matt's hand out in the open and then fought with Damon. He wasn't a stickler for the low-profile vampire agenda.

I scoffed, "Is this how you start all of your relationships? If you can't compel them, just threaten to murder innocent people?"

"I didn't know we were starting a relationship, darling, do tell me more." Kol rasped as he stepped closer to me once more.

"Why are you doing this?" I asked him.

"You…intrigue me." He admitted, "I'm rarely lost for words, and you knocked me off my game."

"Was that something resembling an honest answer?" I asked.

"Happy homicidal maniac is fine. But I resent being called a liar." Kol said plainly.

"One drink." I reiterated.

"That's all I ask of you, love." Kol grinned and gestured to lead the way to the bar.

* * *

"A woman of your calibre ought to keep more suitable company." Kol informed me as I passed him back the pool cue.

His hands brushed over mine as he accepted it. I simply rolled my eyes and returned to my drink. I watched him line up a shot, and caught my eyes tracing along his solid, toned arms. I blinked harshly and clarity returned.

"Why are you here?" I asked him, and he looked over his shoulder. His expression requested I elaborate. I said, "Why are you sticking around Mystic Falls? You could be anywhere in the world by now. Don't you want to...stretch your legs a bit? That was quite a nap you had there."

"I've been everywhere." He rasped, "Where would you propose I go?"

"You said something about not being a liar." I said and took a swig of what I realised now was my _third_ drink.

"I've yet to lie to you, darling." He replied and lined up another shot.

"Which element turned you?" I asked him quietly.

Kol missed, on purpose. I watched as he sauntered his way to me, and passed over the pool cue, exchanging it for the drink in my hand.

"Finn is of the air." Kol explained, "Rebekah is of the earth. Elijah is of the flame. And I am of the sea."

"Water." I uttered and watched him take a sip of my bourbon.

He placed the glass down on the pool table. He was standing dangerously close to me as he spoke; my eyes were fixed on his. If you had asked me in that moment what I was doing there, I honestly couldn't have recalled. I didn't want to be anywhere else; I just wanted to hear him talk.

"I guess it's true what they say then: opposites do attract." He rasped and glanced down at my lips.

"AH!" He grimaced and suddenly began to desiccate over.

"Good job, kid." Alaric rasped as he dragged Kol's lifeless body through into the back and I stood there, baffled.

* * *

"Here!" Alaric hissed to the Salvatore Brothers who were waiting for us at the service entrance, "Grab him!"

"Good work, Little Gilbert." Damon rasped to me.

As soon as the words fell out of Damon's mouth, a strong gust of wind soared through the alley. Klaus snatched the stake out of Kol's chest and slammed Alaric into the wall. Stefan attempted to intervene and met the same fate; he was sent crashing into the concrete steps.

"I should have killed you months ago!" Klaus seethed at Damon.

Flames erupted from my palms and I took my stance beside Damon.

"Aw. Cute. I got this, kid." Damon whispered to me, and then hollered at Klaus, "Fine. Go for it. That's not gonna stop Esther from killing you."

I glared back at Damon and clenched my fists, dismissing the flames; I gestured to go right ahead.

"What did you say about my mother?" Klaus seethed.

"You didn't know I was friends with your mummy?" Damon taunted, "Yeah, we have a lot in common. She hates you as much I do."

"Get back, witch." Klaus scorned at me.

Klaus bared his teeth and started for Damon, only to be called off at the last minute.

"Leave him!" Elijah ordered, appearing suddenly at the top of the stairs. I wasn't entirely sure who he was talking to, his gaze sifted between Klaus and I. He declared, "We still need him, Niklaus."

"What did mother do?" Klaus seethed, "What did she do, Elijah?"

"You tell me where the witches are, or I'll have my sister kill Elena right now." Elijah ordered Damon.

I turned to face Elijah with a look of disbelief, but he coolly avoided my stare.

"You told me we had 'til after 9!" Damon whined.

"I'm sure that Rebekah would be more than happy to start her work early." Elijah declared.

Stefan and Damon exchanged a defeated look, and then disappeared into the night. The Originals disappeared right after, leaving me and a crumpled Alaric alone in the alleyway.

* * *

"What is that?" I asked Elena.

She was sat amongst a pile of laundry, reading something. She glanced up and then passed the note over to me:

 _Elena,_

 _Today I did things I abhor to protect the one thing I value most, my family. If anyone can understand that, it's you. Your compassion is a gift, Elena. Carry it with you, as I will carry my regret, always and forever._

 _Elijah_

"Why did you go to Elijah?" I asked her as I passed it back.

"I didn't. He came to me." She said, and resumed calmly folding the laundry, "He knew that something was wrong. He could tell that you were lying to him, that night at the ball." She watched my expression flicker, and added, "He knows that you tried to save him. And as nice a gesture as that is, he couldn't just roll over and go down with it."

"Yeah. Okay, I get it. He doesn't want to die, and I didn't want him to die either. I didn't know that was the plan until my blood plopped into the cauldron. Esther timed that revelation very well." I uttered as I aggressively folded laundry, "But there is no other way of exterminating Klaus, and what if-"

"There is no easy way. That's not us, Ro." She said, "We are not _him_. We don't take down people who have helped us, and just see them as a means to an end."

"Okay, but Klaus dying as the end, it's a pretty sweet end." I scoffed.

"I want revenge as much as you do. Don't get me wrong." She said, "And we will get it. Just...not like this."

"Okay. We'll table it for the time being." I rasped, "They've all gone now, right?"

She nodded, and said, "I think so. Esther and Finn disappeared into a cloud of smoke. The others will be hellbent on tracking them down. We let them fight between themselves whilst we work on another plan."

"So, to conclude, we're good…just…who knows for how long?" I asked.

"Precisely." Elena said.

"I was thinking of going to see Jeremy for a while." I said, "I haven't seen him since I got back, and if this is our only downtime, I'd rather do that."

Elena's brow peaked and then she asked, "What, now? What about school? There and back in a day is a total waste."

"I asked Caroline to take care of that for me, I'll be a week-tops." I informed her.

"Fine. Caroline's taking care of everything these days." Elena muttered under her breath.

I paused and considered the kindest way of wording: Caroline was also turned into a vampire because of you. So, she can help Bonnie's mom get through it. It's all rather frustrating and it's gonna take a little moment for Bonnie to digest.

"She has a...the freshest experience of being-" I offered, "She's the best person to-"

"I know." Elena rasped, "I know. It's just...Bonnie wouldn't even see me."

"Just give her some time." I said, "Come on. It's Bonnie. It's just...difficult."


	37. Trigger

I stepped inside the kitchen, balancing the grocery bags against my hip and closed the door behind me. I flicked on the light switch. All of my senses were attacked with new, confusing information. The stench of blood hung in the air; my boot crunched down on smashed ceramic; I think it was a coffee mug, and bits of plate; blood was splattered down the cabinet and dripping across the floor.

"Hey, kid." Alaric declared coolly, as he appeared suddenly in the kitchen doorway, wrapping his hand up in a towel, "Long time no see."

I stared back at the man, blankly, and rasped, "Hi."

My gaze loitered on his bloodied hand.

"Oh, I…broke a coffee cup and sliced open my hand trying to pick up the pieces." Alaric declared, and then smirked, "But I'll live. Did Stefan catch up with you, by any chance?"

"No." I rasped.

I couldn't take my eyes off of him, and his nonchalance. It was the strangest feeling. It was for all intents and purposes, Alaric...but it really wasn't. It was chilling.

"Meredith got called in to the hospital for a last-minute surgery, but she'll be back later." Alaric said.

I had no idea what he was talking about. I had ran some last minute errands. I had filled up the car to save time tomorrow morning, ready for my road trip to see Jeremy. I was out of the loop. I could only assume I'd missed out on the Scooby Gang's latest briefing, but I figured I could fill in the gaps pretty easily: something, something, something, stop Alaric's murderous alter-ego. Hello, murderous alter-ego, that's definitely not the aftermath of a broken mug, unless you're doing a scene in Final Destination.

Alaric continued, "You won't know if Elena got my ring? My place is a bit of a disaster. I guess I'll uh, I'll just have to go get it myself. That will be easier."

Then I saw it; sticking out from underneath the chair was a kitchen knife drenched in blood. Yep, and I'm back in the loop.

Alaric sighed heavily, and said, darkly, "You weren't supposed to see that."

"Where is she?" I uttered.

Alaric's eyes darkened further and he lunged for the knife. I panicked and then speared my body into Alaric's, hard, tackling him to the ground. He kicked me off, square in the gut and scrambled for the knife. I grabbed his leg and clawed him back.

"I don't want to hurt you!" I screamed out as he swung onto his back and kicked me in the face.

I groaned out in agony, and cursed as I regained focus. Alaric had the knife. Well, shit.

"Alaric...'s alter-ego. You know who I am?" I asked as he crept his way forward in an appropriately nightmare-ish fashion, "We should really just use our words. You don't want to do this."

On cue, Alaric took a swing at me.

"WHOA." I scorned and backed away, "Don't you have a trigger word or something? Pony. Rainbow. SUNSHINE!"

I dodged the second attempt and ducked out of the way. His wild swing caught my arm. I cried out at the slice. One more tussle and I snatched up the wooden chopping board and smacked him in the back of the head with it. Nothing. I cursed again. I skidded and ran through to the living room, panicking. I can't leave. I can't leave whoever the hell is bleeding to death upstairs; probably Meredith. Alaric stared at me, emptily, now a blade in each hand. I gave him one last out.

"Oh. Great." I scorned, "Very resourceful, sir. AH!"

He threw one knife like a dart; I _just_ evaded it. He ran for me.

"RIC!" I barked and slammed my fist out, emblazoned, into his face.

He was thrown backwards, with some ferocity. He slammed down into the coffee table, shattering it into splintered shards.

Silence enveloped the house.

"Alaric?" I whispered, clutching my bleeding arm, "You down for the count, bud?"

I slipped my phone out of my pocket and speed dialled Elena. I awaited her response patiently and then said, "Hey. I need you to come home right now. Yeah. Alaric went all stabby. And I knocked him out. I'm about to check upstairs, and I suspect Meredith is dead or close to...oh, Stefan's with you. Great. Bring him. Yeah. Do hurry."

I hung up and kicked Alaric in the foot. It flopped. Nothing. He was definitely KO-ed. I stepped cautiously to the side to get a better look at him and saw a scarlet scorch mark on his face. I struggled to suppress the guilt but he relieved me of that mere seconds later. I screamed out as he suddenly swept my leg, and twisted his body around, plunging the knife down into my gut, hard. He held the knife in there, putting all his body weight onto it as he struggled to prop himself back up. I'd never been stabbed before. I never comprehended how agonising it was. His darkened eyes buried themselves into mine, and I saw nothing else.

I was no longer in pain. It was sheer anger. It were as though this anger had been bottled up, and shaken viciously, and Alaric had pierced the bottle. He wasn't a person anymore; he wasn't Alaric; he was something I had to destroy. My clenched fist shot open and flames erupted. Alaric barked out in agony and skidded back out of the stream. I laid into him. I pummelled him. I did not relent.

"RO!" Stefan hollered out, and coughed, "STOP!"

Stefan and Elena sprinted over to us. She grabbed my raised fist and recoiled instantly, as though she'd been burned. Stefan yanked me off, with difficulty, and slammed me into the wall. He grabbed my jaw, forcing my eyes onto his, growling, "STOP! ROSIE!"

He must have seen a waver in my eyes as they were finally taken in by his. He let go.

"Please! RO. We need to go. NOW!" Elena begged, and pulled at Alaric's lifeless body.

"I've got him." Stefan rasped and relinquished Elena's grasp on the man.

I lost all power in my extremities and stared at Ric's arm flopping along as Stefan flashed out of the house. I slipped down the wall to the floor, clutching my stomach. I glanced down. I still had a kitchen knife rammed inside me. I felt around the back. It had gone right through. I scoffed and shuddered. I was squeamish again. I was coming back.

"Get up!" Elena begged me.

She was terrified to touch me; afraid she'd burn her hands again. I glanced around the room as Elena's coughs and splutters grew more strenuous. Our childhood home was darkening.

"Meredith." I uttered.

Elena's eyes widened.

"STEFAN!" Elena screamed as Stefan emerged, "MEREDITH!"

Stefan flashed up the stairs to rescue the woman. Elena implored me again to get up. I yanked out the kitchen knife fiercely, with difficulty, it was slippery inside my blood-soaked hands. I groaned out in agony.

"Let's go!" Stefan called out as he descended the stairs with Meredith's bloody body in his arms.

"Rosanna. Listen to me." Elena said as she coughed and spluttered, "COME ON."

"Go." Stefan said, as he reappeared, "I've got her, go!"

Elena hesitated but then covered her mouth, and staggered out of the burning house. She went to call the fire brigade, although half the street had already done the same. Stefan grabbed my face again, and pulled my dead eyes back to his.

"This is not on you. GET UP." He implored.

I shoved him out of my face, and rose to my feet on my own. He stared back at me, uncertain of what I might do next. His eyes were shrouded by a veil of smoke, illuminated by flickers of light but I saw that it wasn't contained in just his eyes. It was all over his stance and his actions, right down to his core; he didn't trust me. He followed me out.

Stefan had stashed the two bodies at the bottom of the garden. He fed them blood and Damon had appeared to help carry Meredith and Alaric out of there. Stefan gave me his shirt to change into, to hide the fact that I had been 'mortally wounded'. The two of them coached Elena and I on our stories and left just as the fire trucks pulled up to the house.

Damon, with Alaric tossed over his shoulder, paused and patted my arm.

"It's gonna be okay, Barbie. Stick to the script." Damon whispered to me.


	38. This Feels A Little Personal

I stuffed a few more bags of chips in the nook of my arm, which were already primed to topple, and surveyed the glorious assortment of dips before me. Jeremy had invited some of his friends over for a gaming tournament. I was beyond stoked at the idea. It was so…normal. We were gonna be playing Mario Kart. You can't get mad and burn a house down over Mario Kart. Maybe Monopoly. Not Mario Kart. I'd offered to grab supplies for tonight and swung by the gas station on the corner of the street.

"Mild for me. Jalapeno for Jer…" I muttered under my breath.

My voice tailed off at the sight of a fancy black sports car pulling into the lot.

"Nyaaaa!" I blabbered out and ducked down out of view, "Oh. GOD. Why is it so sticky down here?!"

The bags of chips were sent scattering across the floor. I scrambled about desperately, dragging them all over to the cash desk. I tossed the chips up on to the desk and tentatively pulled myself up off the floor, peering out the window in a meerkat fashion. I hissed under my breath, "Pay at the pump. Pay at the pump."

He was gone. The car was there, but the forecourt was empty. I gripped on to the counter and allowed myself to exhale.

"Hey, sorry Rosie! That was a doozy." Tony scoffed, fanning his face as he emerged from the bathroom.

I suppressed the gag and uttered, "It's fine, Tony."

"Whatcha doing on the floor, kiddo? I don't wipe those all the time." Tony uttered.

"Dying of old age, Tony. Ring up the chips!" I scorned and pulled myself up, scouring the lot for any sign of him.

"I dunno what they put in that Gilberino water over there, ya bunch of kooks." Tony chuckled and finally began ringing up the chips.

* * *

I told Tony that I was going out the back, plucked up my paper bag and made my way down the little corridor, past the humming bathroom. I froze instantly and let out something of a yelp as I turned the corner. My grip crumpled on to the paper bag as I almost dropped it.

"Oh, god." I huffed out in disdain.

He was standing square in front of the back door to the rear parking lot, blocking my exit.

"Rosie. Darling." Kol grinned, and gestured wildly, "What brings you to this neck of the woods?"

"You followed me here?" I rasped.

"No." Kol sang, "This is all down to serendipity."

"Why are you here?" I asked him.

"Well. My brother, Klaus, is working on un-linking us." Kol explained, "It is an awfully precarious way to live, the missteps of others constantly hanging over your head, hoping Rebekah doesn't piss off the wrong harlot, Elijah doesn't get his own heart ripped out in glorious irony, Finn doesn't…drown in his own tears."

"Why are you here?" I seethed again.

"Your friend Bonnie? She needed some incentive to hurry the process along a bit." He explained, "Time is of the essence."

He flipped his phone out and showed a video of Jeremy and I playing with his new dog; a video that in any other situation would have been quite charming.

"You even think about-" I groaned.

"Oh, I've thought about it, love." Kol whispered, and sauntered up closer, "I've thought about having you watch me do it, beginning to end. But then, the witch came through for us, and I slowly got over the fact that you seduced me, so your mate could stab me in the heart. Bygones and all that."

"What's going on here?" Tony asked, sticking his head around the corner.

"Nothing. Go away." Kol compelled him, "Forget we were ever here. Forget everything you're about to hear."

"You don't have to do this." I said.

"Quite the contrary." He said, as he slipped his hand into my back pocket, and retrieved my phone, "I can't have you sounding off to your mates, and warning our leverage to do a runner."

My heart skipped several beats as he stood before me. I panicked and chose potentially the worst option: I threw my not-at-all heavy bag of potato chips at him and tried to run. Kol flashed before me.

"I don't have to hurt your gas station friend. I don't have to hurt you." He uttered.

"What a gent." I scorned.

He blocked every furious strike with relative ease and pushed me back again. Okay. He was a little tougher than Alaric. He flashed into me and threw me back into the shelves, sending everything skyward. I groaned and pushed myself up. He snickered that it didn't have to go down like this, I could always come quietly.

I slipped and slid out of his reach, much to his growing frustration. He whispered something of a sarcastic compliment to my fighting style into my ear and I slammed around but my wrist was grabbed well before it made contact, the other one followed suit. He held me in a vice like grip. I was clearly outmatched in strength; I thought back to taking down Damon, it all centred on surprise...well, actually both parties were surprised in that instance.

I conjured flames into my bound hands and he was forced to let me go. I hurled the fire his way. He dodged it, and widened his eyes, a tickled expression consumed him as he watched the stack of newspapers crumple and ignite. I cursed. NOT AGAIN. This is a gas station! He flashed before me, taking advantage of my crippling guilt. He grabbed me by the front of my shirt with one hand and slammed me against a wall, the plaster crumbling behind us. He pressed his arm into my neck. I felt my consciousness fade; my heart rate fell as the lack of air was plunging me into the darkness. He offered me an out one final time, and as I continued to claw at him, he snapped my neck.

* * *

The ache radiating from my neck was building, that's what I'd awakened to first; and then the thumping in my head. I couldn't muster the strength to open my eyes; the scraps of memories were smacking against one another before I simply settled on the fact that I was going to be greeted with something quite terrible.

"Good morning, Sunshine." The voice cackled from somewhere beside me.

My eyes accepted their fate and blurred into a hazy excuse for focus. I felt hideous. I tried to move to caress my aching stiff neck and couldn't. My wrists were bound tightly together behind my head to the frame of a rusty iron bed. Nothing in the dingy motel room gave any clues as to where I was; I could see a window at the far end of the room, but with the blinds closed I had no hope of seeing out of it.

Kol rose from his seat and parked himself down beside me, resting casually on his back. I flinched as he leant over and showed me my own phone. He informed me, "You have a message from Elena, darling: _Don't kill Kol! If you kill an Original, then the entire vampire bloodline dies along with them!_ Exclamation point. Colon. Open bracket. And she reminds you that Stefan, Damon, and Caroline could all die along with me."

Kol sighed theatrically and tucked my phone away into his pocket once more. He whispered closely, "I suggest you take heed. Also, Nik broke the link. So, that original 'take them all out' plan is officially down the loo."

I struggled against my bindings and groaned from beneath my gag.

"Oh, forgive me, promise you won't bite?" Kol scoffed, and yanked the gag down, "I didn't quite catch that?"

"You got what you wanted. We lost. So, leave us the hell alone." I scorned at him.

"No one's taught you how to fight, have they?" He asked me, "I mean two re-generations in, you should be giving me a run for my money. It's all there, but you're too unfocused. You let your anger get the better of you."

"Okay. Great talk. You won." I scorned at him, "Now, let me go."

"Well if I let you go _and_ I promise to not go back to stalking Jeremy full time." Kol informed me simply, "You have to promise not to go all postal and burn this seedy motel to the ground?"

"I'd be doing the world a favour." I groaned, "This place is disgusting."

I froze and suddenly realised what he meant by that. He wasn't talking about the first house I burned down. I looked back at him and uttered, "Wait."

Kol shook his head, and said, "You didn't. Chill out."

He leant over me, and I shrunk back beneath him, instinctively. He declared it was an act of good faith and snapped the binding between my wrists. I slid out from under him and staggered back away from him. I turned away, groaning as I rubbed my sore wrists and neck.

"Are you alright?" He asked solemnly.

"Yeah. No. You killed me." I scorned and went for him.

I didn't have any energy to draw from, given that I'd only risen from the dead a few minutes ago. My body felt battered, but all I saw was red.

"You're still weak." Kol sang as I staggered up from the broken shards of the table he'd just thrown me into, like rag doll.

He dodged the chair I threw at him, and the lamp, and the phone.

"Look, I couldn't have you spoiling our plan, love. If it makes you feel better, I apologise. It wasn't personal." Kol said with a smirk, and then gestured to the trashed motel room, "This feels a little personal."

Kol grabbed my wrists with a familiar vice-like ferocity and slammed me into the wall. I was completely caught off guard by his proximity to my face. He rasped, "You done?"

I don't know why…maybe it was the only valid option. I stared into Kol's fierce steely eyes in that dangerous moment and I chose surprise; I closed mine. I kissed him, gently at first, uncertainly. He kissed me back; a kiss laced with just as much uncertainty. I pulled against his tight grip and he released my hands around his neck; his kiss intensified. My hands found their way up and into his hair, and his explored their way further down my back, and lifted me up into his arms with one swell action. I curled my legs around his body out of fear from the sudden lift and felt a smile break beneath his kiss in response. He dropped us down onto the janky bed and he came down on top of me.

I needed the other side of the bed for any hope of this working. I rolled us over so that I was perched on top of him, and I caught sight of the shard. He rose up to meet my lips once more, and his hands disappeared into my hair. The shard disappeared from my mind once more as he kissed me passionately. I worked against the buttons of his shirt, stopping every time he kissed and touched me somewhere new. Impatiently, he pulled his shirt off. He ripped my t-shirt down, and kissed and nibbled his way along my neck, and…I let him do it; I let the Original Vampire beneath me kiss my neck, and it frightened me beyond belief. His slow sensual bite broke skin. He tasted it.

I had him. He…he was open. I snatched up the shard and impaled the sharp wood directly into his heart. His face twisted and contorted as I held my grip over him, and he desiccated over…for now. Satisfied he was down for the count, I staggered my way backwards off of him, and held my arms around my waist for a moment more. I looked down at my torn shirt, literally holding on by a few threads, and begrudgingly snatched up his shirt from the ground to cover myself.


	39. Let's Call A Truce

I scoured the batting cages, and sped-walked along to the right one. Jeremy turned around and grinned, and then looked really confused at my dishevelled appearance.

"Hey! Ro. We missed you last night. What happened? Are you okay?" He asked.

"Um...we have a problem." I whispered to him.

"Hey, Jer! Rosie!" Elena called out from behind the batting cage, and waved us over.

Jeremy and I exchanged a baffled look and then stepped out to greet her, with Damon in tow.

"Elena! What's wrong?" Jeremy asked her, and then turned to ask me, "This has something to do with your thing?"

"What's your thing?" Damon asked.

"Why are you here?" I asked them.

Damon explained that they were trying to figure out which Original Vampire was at the top of their Vampire Family Tree; working back the way, Damon and Stefan were sired by Katherine, who was sired by Rose. They needed to find out who sired Rose.

"So, you travelled across the country to get me to talk to a dead vampire." Jeremy said.

"The dead vampire's redundant, but yes." Damon said.

"Well, I can't." Jeremy said with a shrug, "I can talk to Anna and Vicki because I knew them. I never met Rose."

"What good is you dying and coming back to life if you can't talk to a ghost when I need you to?" Damon scorned.

"Rose spent a long time running from Klaus as well." Elena explained, "Her and Damon were close so maybe we can use you as a connection."

"Fine, fine." Jeremy sighed, "But can we do this later? My friend just got here, and yes, Damon, I actually have some. I'll call you when I'm done."

"Yeah, sure." Damon said and turned to me, "Wait. What was your _thing_ , Littlest Gilbert?"

"Jer…" Elena started but froze.

"Hey, man!" Jeremy greeted his friend sauntering over to us with a baseball bat.

"DAMON." Elena exclaimed, "It's Kol!"

"Oh, that. Yeah. That." I groaned just as Kol smacked Damon across the head with his bat.

I scrunched up my body at the crunching sound reverberated off him. Damon slammed down to the ground, and the bat shattered into splinters from the sheer force he'd been hit. I figured in that moment Kol had gone lightly on me.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Jeremy scorned at Kol.

"JEREMY, get back!" Elena screamed, "He's an original!"

"What?!" Jeremy called out.

"No hard feelings, mate, but we're not buds." Kol explained to Jeremy as he plucked up a new bat, "You know, I'll never get used to aluminium, but hey, at least it won't break."

Damon shoved himself up from the ground and slammed the broken bat into Kol's chest. Kol's body desiccated over once more and slumped down to the ground. Damon panted and struggled up to his feet.

"Did you kill him?" Jeremy asked.

"No, but it'll give us a head start." Damon groaned, "Come on."

* * *

"For the record, she's the one who wanted to stop in a motel, not me." Damon snorted as we all trudged our way up the stairs to our room.

"So, where are we?" Jeremy asked.

"Corner of somewhere and nowhere, where Kol can't find us." Damon joked, and nudged me, "Well. Unless he follows the trail of ashes left by this one."

"I didn't burn down the gas station!" I scorned and slapped him in the gut. I turned to face Jeremy and asked, quietly, "Right?"

"Right. Pretty sure the whole street would've rumbled." Jeremy assured me, and then sighed, "I can't believe Kol was a vampire."

"Well, didn't you find it weird that you made a friend so fast?" Damon scoffed, "Have you met you?"

"Not helping." Elena scorned.

* * *

Rose had finally appeared to Jeremy, and informed us that 'Scary Mary' was her sire. She didn't know where Mary was, but she had disappeared into the ether once more to find out. It was a waiting game, once more. Damon and I returned from our food run. The motel room door opened, and we were presented with Elena and Jeremy looking sheepish, like they'd just had an argument.

"Everything okay in here?" I asked.

"Yeah, it's fine." Elena huffed out.

"Okay." Damon said, "Well, I'm going to freshen up."

"A word." Jeremy whispered to me.

He snatched my noodle box out of my hands, plopped it down and gestured to follow him outside, way out of earshot.

"What?" I scorned. I was starving.

"What's up with her and Damon?" Jeremy asked me.

"What?" I asked, "What do you mean?"

"Oh my god, you're literally repeating her, word for word." Jeremy said, "Rose said she's rooting for them. Like...to get together. What happened with Stefan?"

"Oh. Uh...I actually don't know." I said, "Genuinely. I don't butt in where Damon's concerned. I don't get it."

"Because it's weird, right?" Jeremy scoffed, "I mean come on, it's Damon!"

"Yes. It's weird. And not anyone's first choice. But...he's always been smitten with her, and she's always told him, in no uncertain terms, that she's in love with Stefan." I offered him.

"And...is she?" Jeremy asked, "Cause I'm catching googly-eyes, even the dead are catching them!"

"They're just on the outs, last I heard." I said, "Come on, it's Stefan's brother. It's weird. Just...don't think about it. Okay? Can I have my noodles now?"

* * *

The front door slammed, and I shot upright. I watched in the peppered darkness as Damon's figure followed suit and left the room, closing the door behind him with a little more tact. I glanced around the room and noted Elena was missing. Jeremy lay next to me, his hands behind his head, staring at the ceiling.

"They okay?" I whispered to him.

Jeremy just scoffed and shrugged. His attention shifted swiftly over to the empty chair by the bathroom. He fixated on it; I glanced between the chair, and his scrunched up expression. He searched for the little notepad next to the motel phone, and scribbled something down.

He nodded to the empty chair and scoffed, "Yeah, thanks. Nah, I don't think so." He ripped off the sheet of paper and shoved it in his pocket, he told me to get ready, Rose had found Mary.

"Jer?" I asked him as he flung the motel door open and started after them. I got up and followed over to the door, listening in.

"Elena?" Jeremy called out.

"Oh, my god, Jeremy." Elena rasped. She sounded flustered.

"Rose found Mary." Jeremy said plainly, "She lives in Kansas."

"Okay then." Damon rasped, in a tone of equal fluster, "Let's go."

* * *

"This is the address." Jeremy said as we pulled up to an old plantation house, in the middle of an appropriately creepy grove.

"Looks about right." I muttered.

"No. Wait here." Elena told Jeremy.

"Why?" Jeremy scoffed, "So you two can make out some more?"

"OH." I groaned out, and glanced between them, as the pieces all fit together.

"Don't be a dick." Damon scorned, "Listen to your sister. I'll take Indestructible Sue here for back up."

"Urgh. Fine." I groaned and headed towards the house.

"Thank you. Enjoy the awkward silence." Damon muttered to my siblings and followed me.

* * *

Damon slowly creaked the dusty old door open and glanced around inside; nothing. He beckoned to follow him. The validity of the tip was instantly called into question; either Mary thrived in squalor, or this house had been empty for...centuries.

"Whoa." Damon groaned at the disgusting mess surrounding us, "Like Vampire Hoarders."

"Who is this Mary person?" I asked him.

"Scary Mary." Damon semi-explained, "Really old, super creepy."

"She uh, one for jump-scares?" I muttered, my eyes flickering around every corner of the space.

"There's not a whole lot she isn't down for." Damon muttered back, with a smirk.

"And how do you know her?" I asked him.

"You know." Damon said, with a shrug.

"Of course." I groaned.

"What?" Damon scoffed, "I said creepy, not ugly."

"I think that just about does it for the talking segment. Back to creepy silence, please." I groaned.

A massive bang radiated upstairs. My shoulders bunched involuntarily. Dust was unsettled. The walls groaned. We followed the source of the bang to a room upstairs and found who I could only presume was Mary staked against the wall, desiccated.

"Mary..." Damon sighed out.

"Quite contrary." Kol announced, and flickered the lights on for added dramatic flair.

My eyes groaned at the sudden illumination, and finally adjusted upon Kol sat smugly in a chair, his baseball bat nestled across his shoulders.

"Shame about Mary. She used to be a blast. I don't quite know what happened." He declared and approached the dead woman pinned to the wall. He shook his head and said, "I fear all the time she spent with my family might have ruined her. She was a bit of an Original groupie."

"And were you her favourite?" I asked.

"You mean, did I turn her?" Kol asked, theatrically, "I think I did. But, no, wait! Maybe it was Rebekah. But there was also a Klaus period. And let's not forget the Elijah affair. I spoke to my brother. I know you're trying to find out who you descended from." He turned back to Mary and faked disappointment as he declared, "Now you never will." He patted his bat on the ground and said, "So, where did we leave off?"

His bat collided with Damon's body multiple times, and he groaned out in agony.

"Ro, get out of here!" Damon groaned.

"Don't, darling." Kol scoffed, as he flashed into the doorway before me, "You know the script."

"GAH. Don't touch her! Beef's with me." Damon groaned out.

"Such gallantry! Brings a tear to the eye!" Kol declared and smacked him once more, "Relax, darling. I just want us to be even. You snapped my neck, you killed my brother, and then you humiliated me!" He beat Damon into a pulp and eventually tossed the bat aside, rasping, "There."

He pulled Damon back into a choke hold, and snapped his neck, declaring that they were even as Damon's lifeless beaten body slumped to the ground. I motioned to get to Damon, but Kol flashed in front of me once more, blocking my path. He grabbed on to my arm as I tried to push past him.

"Sorry about that. Damon and I had some unfinished business." Kol rasped, "You and I…on the other hand…"

"There is no you and me!" I groaned and fought against him, "Get off me!"

"That kiss told a different story, darling." Kol noted, with a smirk, and relinquished his hold on me.

"You're pathetic." I scorned, and caressed where his tight grip had been.

"Note, not a single hair on Jeremy's head has been touched." Kol reminded me.

"And that woman behind us, the one you murdered?" I groaned.

"Ah. Self-preservation. Signing from your very own hymn sheet. Lest we forget you bound me and my siblings together, and stabbed me in the heart...twice." Kol noted and then stepped ever closer, with a tickled expression, he asked, "Are you wearing my shirt?"

I glared back at him.

"Looks good on you. Look, let's call a truce." He asked, circling me, "You know you can't kill me. Literally, _you_ can't. And then there's the whole potential end of your friends thing on top of that. So, what do you say?"

His breath danced across my neck. One hand curved its way around my waist, pulling me back up against his body. He sighed heavily and stopped, he held me close to him for a heartbeat longer, wrestling with his own thoughts. I didn't think of anything else. I closed the gap between us this time, kissing him passionately. I gave in to the intoxicating feeling and I let it consume me.

"ROSANNA? DAMON?" Jeremy called out from outside the house.

Kol sighed and raised a finger to my lips. He whispered, "Think about it. I will."

He pulled me in once more, as we heard Jeremy holler for our whereabouts, and disappeared by the time I'd opened my eyes. I stood there flustered and excruciatingly turned on. I straightened myself up as best I could before facing the music.


	40. We Had It So Good

**The 20's Decade Dance - Mystic Falls High School - Gymnasium**

"Can you believe those two?" Caroline scorned and gestured wildly at the starry banners above us. Her eyes shot back to mine and awaited a similar display of outrage, but only found confusion. She snapped back, and declared, "The stars are supposed to trickle down. I gave Matt and Jeremy clear instructions. I could not have been any clearer. And what do I get? That is not a trickle! That is a mess."

"Um..." I began, and squinted at the perfectly acceptable decoration above us.

"Hey! No. Don't even try to defend them. It's fine. Okay? It's my own fault. I should have checked back in with them." Caroline sighed out heavily, "I should have known better. They were probably too busy being all giggly and bro-mancey to spare any sense of pride in their work."

"Matt's been great, helping Jeremy readjust." I offered, "He got him his old job back at the Grille, and he's staying with him too...you know, cause...uh, well, you know."

I cringed as the reason for my brother having to crash with Matt hung in the air as awkwardly as a non-trickling starry banner. Contractors were buzzing in and around the charred frame of our house all of the time. Mrs Tiller, a pensioner from across the street, was always texting me with mild to not so interesting updates, but it was still completely uninhabitable, and would be for a while.

"Well, that was nice of him." Caroline said, with little enthusiasm; his good deeds did not waive his deplorable decoration attempts.

"Jeremy's got a lot on his mind. The whole thing with Alaric has got him really stressed out. He's brushing everything off like it's nothing, but it's an act. He cares about his family, more than anything, and Alaric may as well be family." I confided in her, and saw her demeanour soften as she truly listened to me, and put the banner to the back of her mind.

"You sure it's not just the trauma of seeing Elena and Damon getting hot and heavy at a skeevy motel?" Caroline suggested.

I tried to stifle the laugh, but her wild expression made me lose it.

"I mean, come on! What the hell is that? You know what, don't even-I don't want anything resembling an answer. It's just wrong! And it's not happening. Not on my watch!" Caroline said, emphatically, "Don't worry. I made her see sense. I pushed her into asking Stefan to be her date tonight."

"You pushed her?" I sighed.

"Push is...the wrong word. I put forth Stefan as an excellent candidate and I presented a wealth of information and proof to back up my claim. And really, there was no other possible outcome." Caroline argued, "Of course he should be her date. Look at them!"

"She like...just made out with his brother." I muttered.

"All the more reason!" Caroline rattled back, "She is supposed to be figuring out what she wants? That's what Stefan wanted her to do, right?"

"Yeah, but-" I began.

"But nothing!" Caroline interrupted, "I've watched The Bachelor! Fair is fair. It is Stefan's turn."

"Yeah, and you're not biased or anything." I laughed.

"I'm sorry, but Stefan is Elena's epic love, and I'm not going down without a fight!" Caroline declared, and she raised her hand up high, "Are you with me? Team Stefan?!"

I rolled my eyes and met her high-five as I droned out, "Team Stefan."

* * *

The dance team had just finished a Charleston, and the music had slowed down into a beautiful waltz. Freddie saw my little wave, excused himself from the huddle and made his way over to me.

"Hey, Rosie." Freddie said, kindly, and clinked glasses with me, "Long time no see. How are you?"

"Hey. Yeah. Good. I'm good. Uh, who's the new girl?" I asked, and gestured at the girl I didn't recognise. I tried to hold it in; I tried to have some modicum of composure and cool, but it just spilled out. I stopped just short of babbling out: Who is she? She's great. She's got all the steps down. She's brilliant and sparkly and committed. She's filled my vacancy fantastically. Great stuff. I'm not jealous. At all. This punch is great. The sidelines...are where it's at!

Freddie's brow did a little dance of their own, and then he informed me, "Uh, Megan. Freshman." He took a long sip of his punch as I hummed and nodded and then he glanced around a little and whispered, "She's got nothing on you, but…we had to give your spot away, you know? Re-arrange and bump everyone up a space. We had votes and ballot boxes for the top spots. It was all very democratic-"

"No. Hey. No. I-I totally get it." I said, quickly, to cut off his frantic reasoning. I shrugged and scoffed, "Can't be on the team if you're never there, right? No. I...get that. The democracy thing sounds...great. Democracy is-is...great."

Freddie looked as if he wanted to re-ignite his frantic reasoning, but instead he pursed his lips, caressed my arm and asked, "I'll see you later? Save me a non-scheduled dance?"

I nodded, genuinely, and told him that I'd love that, and he disappeared to rejoin the dance team...his team. I watched them laugh with each other. I watched them double check the next steps, go over the trickier combinations one final time. My gaze shot away; I bit the inside of my cheek to subdue the feeling, and stop my prickling eyes in their tracks. I looked into the bottom of my glass as I sipped it slowly, as my heart sunk down and dropped onto the tired gym floor. Esther had told me my days as any other ordinary teenager from small town Virginia were over, but as I watched my friends playing out some of my favourite scenes from a past life, I didn't feel powerful, untouchable or dangerous...I felt lonely.

"You need me to kick his ass?" Tyler asked from behind me.

My shoulders bunched a little at the sudden interruption to my pity party, and I shook my head. I huffed out a little laugh and turned to ask him, "No. Thank you...and what the hell are you doing here?"

Tyler looked upon me, with a kindness in his eyes, but it too felt a lot like pity, and I was still drowning in Freddie's serving of that, so I took a leaf out of my brother's book, brushed the whole thing off, and didn't share any of what I was truly feeling. He explained, "I'm uh, looking for Caroline. And expecting a similar reception from her."

Damon suddenly barged his way into our conversation and scorned, "Blondie's over there." He grabbed my arm and declared, "Barbie's coming with me."

* * *

Damon dragged me out of the gym, under grumbling protest, and rushed us down the hall, away from all the flappers and mobsters. He flashed us around the corner to join Elena and Stefan speaking in hushed tones. I took a moment to steady myself; my head spun from the unwelcome speed.

"Ugh." I groaned out, and propped my hand on the lockers to reset the spinning world around me, "Warning. Please."

"Look alive, Barbie." Damon scorned and snapped his fingers in front of my face.

Elena sighed heavily, and presented a full jar of what looked like oregano as she informed me, "Those are the magical herbs that Bonnie gave to Ric, to subdue his psycho alter-ego.

Damon cut in, gestured wildly as he scorned, "Note how very full and untouched said jar is."

"Crap." I muttered.

"He's been on borrow time for a while now." Damon said, with a dismissive shrug.

"If Alaric is sick, then we _need_ to find a cure, something." Elena shot back, with a glare.

"We tried medicine." Damon scoffed, "We tried magic."

"Why don't we get him off Vervain, compel him? Stefan suggested.

"To do what, pretend to be Alaric?" Damon scoffed and implored, "The guy that we know is gone. We're talking about someone who not only hates vampires, but vampire sympathisers, which makes one of his most obvious targets, I don't know, YOU." Damon had rolled his eyes and landed on Elena.

"What?" I asked, "You think he'd go after Elena?"

"Need we relive the Great Fire of Maple Street?" Damon groaned, "Man's a lost cause!"

"So wait, what are you suggesting we do?" Elena hissed.

"I'm suggesting that we put him out of his misery." Damon stated.

"What?" Elena gasped.

"No way in hell!" Jeremy barked over us, as he sauntered up from behind the group.

"Oh, come on." Damon groaned, "It's what he would want. It's a mercy killing."

"You are out of your mind!" Jeremy seethed and stormed away.

"Jeremy!" I called after him.

Elena grabbed my arm and pulled me back. She said 'I'll go', and she raced after our brother. Stefan pinched his brow and paced a little, pensively. I watched my sister disappear and then turned sharply to whack Damon in the torso.

"HEY!" Damon scorned and shot his hands up in protest.

"This is Alaric we are talking about. He's supposed to be your friend, maybe your only friend!" I scowled at Damon, "He looked out for us. And we need to do the same for him!"

"Yes. _He_ did." Damon growled back, "R _ic_ did. That's not Ric! The guy who stabbed you in the guts, tried to off Meredith? He is not Ric!"

"We go down swinging for the people we love, Damon, we don't just give up!" I argued, "Would you be okay with us giving up on you?"

"If I was going all Stabby Joe, and couldn't stop stabbing said people I love, then yeah!" Damon scoffed, "Put me down! Let the stabber become the stab...ee!"

"Damon." Stefan groaned and said, "Just. No."

"No one is going to hurt him." I uttered to Damon, and stepped up into his face.

" _HE_ is going to hurt them." Damon uttered back, mocking my cadence, "How many passes do you dish out, oh wise heavenly one? Seriously, what is the limit? If this was any other dude, he'd be in the ground by now!"

Jeremy suddenly skidded around the corner and rattled out, "Elena's gone with Esther. COME! NOW!" He sprinted back down the hallway.

We all looked at each other in confusion, dropped the hatchet, and then ran after him.

"Elena!" I called out into the crowd hanging outside.

We all trudged after Jeremy, who led the way out towards the parking lot, until suddenly Damon and Stefan slammed into an invisible wall and I slammed straight into Damon's back. I groaned out and caressed my face from the impact; he was a hard person...literally.

"Salt." Stefan scorned and gestured to the line of white dust looping around the entire building, "It's a binding agent for a spell."

"We're trapped here." Damon declared.

"We?" I uttered and stepped up to knock on the invisible wall. As my hand rasped against absolutely nothing, I sighed out, "Crap."

* * *

The dance was long over by now. Our cover story was an overly zealous call to arms of the clean-up committee. Bonnie was tucked away in a classroom somewhere, surrounded by candles, chanting gibberish under the watchful eyes of Klaus, Caroline, Stefan, Damon, Jeremy, Matt, oh, and her date, Jamie too. All those eyes were definitely working wonders on her concentration. There wasn't really much else to do in here but stare at Bonnie. I guess we could have actually started cleaning up...

Tyler walked into the empty gymnasium and settled down beside me up on the bleachers. We sat for a little moment, looking over nothing but the dance remnants; dropped cups, empty punch bowls, confetti on the floor, a jacket or two left behind. It was still. It was kind of pretty with all the twinkly lights Caroline had smothered the place in.

"You okay?" He asked me, eventually.

I glanced over at him and sighed out. I told him, honestly, "No. We should be tidying up the mess of a night we spent all week talking about, and looking forward to, and getting ready for...not some centuries-old family feud."

"Hmm. You're right. I did grab my dad's old suit last minute." Tyler admitted, "I put no thought into this look."

"Tyler." I laughed.

"Sorry." Tyler said, with a chuckle, "No. Believe me. I get it. I feel you. I had a few moments tonight, dancing with Caroline, making her laugh, hanging out with Matt, offering to beat people up for you...it felt so...normal."

I laughed with him and then I shook my head and said, "We had it really good. I just miss that. I miss being on that damn team."

"Well, hey, now you get to be on the supernatural...trapped in here...team?" Tyler offered, with a smirk.

I playfully punched his arm, and his laughter tailed off as he turned sincere.

"Hey. You're not alone, you know?" Tyler said. I looked at him, a little confused, and he said, "Okay, it's not as fun as the dance team, or as slick and choreographed. But it's a team, and you are a really important part of it." I tilted my head a little and smiled at his kind words. I didn't know what to say and so he said, "Caroline told me about back then; you uh, fighting to get a place for me on the team. Back when my whole world was falling apart, and I had no one to turn to...maybe because I pushed them all away."

"You didn't know-" I offered.

"Exactly. Look, I don't know what I'd do without you guys. And even though I was a dick, you wanted me to have that back up. That belonging. That feeling like everything was somehow gonna be okay." Tyler said, "So, thank you, for doing that, or trying to speed it along. You're a really good friend, when you really don't have to be." I bit the inside of my cheek and Tyler put his arm around me, he pulled me in to rest on his shoulder and he said, "She's gonna be okay."

We sat there for a little while, and talked some more; there wasn't really anything else that we could do. Tyler had always had a special hidden talent for making people feel better. He didn't make you forget about what was even bothering you in the first place; he laughed you through it and gave you another perspective. He had always looked out for me. for as long as I'd known him, either implicitly or in the background where I couldn't notice, but he never wanted or accepted it in return. He was hard to crack, and hard to protect. It made me feel a lot lighter to hear he knew that I had tried to look out for him.

Stefan emerged into the gymnasium and informed us, "They're at the old cemetery. Jeremy and Matt are headed there right now."

"You let them go?" I whined as I shot to my feet, "They're gonna get themselves killed!"

"We didn't have a choice, Ro!" Stefan shot back, visibly frustrated and scorned, "We're useless right now stuck in here."

"Hey, she'll be fine." Tyler assured us both, "Elena always manages to find her way through this stuff."

"Yeah, well, I'm just as worried about what Esther's up to." Stefan said, "She led Klaus here for a reason. If she succeeds in whatever she's doing-"

"Klaus could get killed...and I die along with him." Tyler finished his sentence concisely.

"No one's gonna die, okay?" Stefan declared, "Bonnie's still looking for a way around the boundary spell. It's not too late."

I turned sharply to Tyler after Stefan disappeared out the door, and said, "Is that what that was? You think you're dying?"

"It's not a great time to be descended from Klaus." Tyler said, with a shrug, "Gotta get it all out."

"You are not dying!" I snapped back.

"Ro-I-" Tyler started.

"Shut up." I scorned over him, and sat back down next to him, to wait it out some more.

* * *

 **Mystic Falls Cemetery**

Bonnie had managed to lift the boundary spell, as Esther was no longer fighting her. We raced over to the cemetery, and found that drop in willpower was clearly linked to Esther dropping dead. Alaric had stabbed her in the back with the knife that she had plunged into him only moments before. Esther had turned Alaric into a new iteration of Mikael - The Original Family's father - The Original Vampire Hunter.

"Hey, we're here." I said, as Jeremy and I rushed into the crypt. Elena and Ric were having a close, hushed conversation between themselves.

"And Klaus took Esther's body." Jeremy informed them.

"Does he know about the stake?" Alaric asked.

"No, only that she tried to turn you into a weapon and failed." Jeremy declared.

I glanced back and forth between Alaric and Elena. They couldn't even look at us. My heart sank in my chest as I asked either of them, "What's going on?"

"Listen, guys, I'm not gonna complete the transition." Alaric informed my brother and I. Elena continued to look sheepishly at the floor as he explained, "My dark side was dangerous enough as a human. I can't be a vampire."

"So, what, we're just gonna lock you in here and let you die?" Jeremy scoffed, and shook his head, "No. No, we can't!"

He looked at me, and I didn't know what to say. I stood there, heartbroken, paralysed; we had to go through this...again?!

"Listen, Jeremy, it's the right thing to do, okay?" Ric insisted, and then turned to me, as if I were the easier of the two to pull on board, "After everything that's happened, after-after all that I've done, maybe I had it coming."

"Hey, wait, Jer." Elena implored, and managed to hold Jeremy back from storming off in pain.

"Alaric, this isn't your fault." I suddenly blurted out, and insisted, "None of it is. And that-hey-that's all water under the bridge, I mean-we both got some really good hits in-"

"No. Ro. It's not just that, you know, please, you guys, let's not make this any harder than it already is. You should go. All of you. Damon's here. He'll make sure it'll all go down the right way." Alaric said and then called Jeremy back, "Hey. Hey!"

"Don't!" Jeremy scoffed, "Just don't give me some crap speech about how I need to be the man of the house."

"Okay. I won't." Alaric said and embraced him tightly.

Jeremy embraced his friend back and then stormed off.

"This is all my fault. You moved out. You-you gave me your ring back." Elena sobbed at Ric, "You didn't want any part of this, and I-I forced you to stay and take care of us."

"Don't do that. Okay? Taking of you guys has been…it's been the closest I've ever come to the life I always wanted." Alaric said and he embraced us both tightly. He pulled away and told my sister and I, "You should go."

* * *

 **Mystic Grill - Bar**

We trudged inside the back door. We didn't turn on the lights; our path was guided by the blue glow of the bar's back lights. Matt went behind the bar and poured three shots of bourbon for us. Jeremy and I sat down before him, watching him, without a word. Matt held up his shot glass and toasted, "Mr. Saltzman."

"Alaric." Jeremy said.

"Ric." I barely huffed out.

We clinked our glasses together and threw our shots back. We sat before each other in complete silence. Jeremy wiped away a tear from his cheek. What was there to say? We could only agree that we had to do something. We couldn't go home, literally, our house had burned to the ground, but we couldn't go just anywhere and twiddle our thumbs, and push the thought to the back of our minds; Alaric was dying, maybe already dead. None of us really felt like shooting the shit or saying anything whilst this agony was still so raw. So, the only sound in the Grill was that of Matt picking up the bottle, and refilling our glasses.

* * *

 **Mystic Grill - Exterior**

I had excused myself for a moment, for some fresh air. I leant against the service door entrance for a long moment, closed my eyes, and let the cold pre-dawn air hit my face; I focused solely on that feeling. I had felt the sadness begin to dissipate, and become replaced with the anger now boiling in my chest. I had to focus on the cold, chilling air, to quell the flames, just like I had practiced.

"Please. Go away." I muttered, without opening my eyes.

"This is what you are built for, isn't it?" Kol noted, "Restoring the balance? Good over evil, blah blah blah, insert self-righteous monologue here? You're not supposed to mourn when evil seeps out of this world."

My eyes sprung open, and sharpened against his. I rose from the door and informed him, tersely, "He's not evil. He's...he was subjected to it! He's a good man." I sighed out heavily and added, "And I am so tired of losing people."

"People die." Kol said, simply, wiping a stray tear away from my cheek, "Irrespective of how they lived."

"Great pep talk. I feel loads better." I scoffed, and demanded, "What are you doing here?"

"You always ask me that." Kol said, with a mischievous grin, "You don't have to know everything right away. You could just live in the moment for once."

"It's a pretty shitty moment." I whispered back.

Kol glanced down at my lips, travelled up as my heart skipped a beat, and then, with a smirk on his, leant down to meet them. He kissed me intensely, his palm brushed against my cheek, before finding its way to the nape of my neck. Okay, hindsight? I don't know why. I don't have a smart answer. I kissed him back. I was sad. I was lonely. He was beautiful, and he kissed me in a manner that overpowered my better judgement.

I did pull away in a moment of sobering clarity, and I scorned, halfheartedly, "…don't."

His eyes were fixated on my lips as he exhaled, "Don't what?"

His hands caressed my cheek and slid up my waist, sending delighted shivers up my spine. I knew that I needed to remove myself from his arms, right then. But I wanted to delay the pain, and the sadness, and the reality, and I gave in to the present intoxicating feeling. I let it consume me and that's all I got.

"Your heart is beating so loud it-it's deafening." Kol rasped and brushed a hand against my cheek, "You know I can make you feel better."

"I don't _know_ you." I rasped out.

"So?" Kol said, and shook his head.

He found his way to the back of my neck and pulled me back into a deep kiss; a deep intoxicating kiss.


	41. You Are Free

**Mystic Falls High School**

Rebekah had been staring at me weirdly ever since we stepped inside the school. She suggested that dead father figure should excuse me from the clean up crew. I assured her that I was fine. I just needed to do something. Anything. Even cleaning up the stupid dance we were trapped in last night, which kept us from saving Alaric, which then clouded my judgement and made me do something incredibly stupid. I left out that last part, but the way that she was looking at me? It made me question whether I had tripped up and blurted it all out loud.

"Hmm." Rebekah hummed, and looked me up and down again.

Caroline sauntered into the cafeteria and glanced between Rebekah and I. She asked, "Where's Matt?"

"He bailed." Rebekah declared, and tossed some trash out.

"He got called into work at the last minute." I explained.

"Are you kidding me?" Caroline whined, and sighed heavily as she asked, "So, it's just us?"

"Yes, and you're late." Rebekah snapped at her, "Clean-up committee started at 8 o'clock."

"It's like 8:02." Caroline said with a shrug.

"Exactly." Rebekah scoffed, "I turned up on time and I didn't even get to attend the dance that _I_ organised."

"I'm sorry about your mom." Caroline said abruptly, "I mean, I know that you like hated her, and everything, but still. I'm sorry."

"Sorry about your teacher." Rebekah said, genuinely, "He seemed like a nice guy."

"Yeah." Caroline said, "He was."

An awkward silence loitered for a moment, before Rebekah finally declared, "I'm going to get started on the gym."

She sauntered outside. Caroline and I exchanged a bemused look

"That was-" I uttered.

"I know, right?" Caroline scoffed but was cut off my the sound of a tussle outside.

Caroline flashed out of the room, and I chased after her. Rebekah was screaming and lashing out. _Alaric_ had her pinned up against the lockers, the White Oak stake hovering above her chest.

"You're supposed to be dead!" I hollered at him in sheer disbelief, snatching his attention away for a split second. Long enough for Caroline to slam into him.

The two girls managed to slam the stake back into Alaric but that didn't really stop him. It only angered him. Caroline screamed out to run! The three of us high-tailed it out of there.

"The trees!" Rebekah hissed to me, and led the way.

Caroline was right behind us, until she screamed out. I skidded to a stop. Rebekah kept on running. Alaric had caught Caroline, and seemed completely unfazed by his skin bleeding and blistering in the sunlight. He snapped her neck, snatched up her leg and dragged her back inside the school in a slick series of motions. I stared back at the scene in disbelief.

"What the _hell_ are you doing?!" Rebekah spat, running back to me.

"What the hell are _you_ doing?!" I scorned back, "We can't leave her?!"

"That was a close enough call." Rebekah scoffed and rubbed her chest.

"He. But. The...what?!" I blabbered out.

Rebekah scorned as she ran away, "Don't be stupid, Little Phoenix. It's not worth it."

* * *

 **Klaus Mikaelson's Mansion**

The pain radiating throughout my body was waking me up. I gradually came to, and opened my blurry eyes. Nothing around me meant anything, or connected any dots together. I couldn't remember what had happened.

"AHHH." I groaned and bunched up my body. My arms felt heavy.

"Oh, do be careful." Klaus of all people soothed me, "Moving only makes it hurt more."

My heart began to thunder in my chest as I came further to and took in my surroundings. I glanced down at my arms, needles and tubes were curling out of them, red running through. I muttered out, "What-what are you doing?"

"I am draining you of all your blood. Well, what's left of it." Klaus stated, matter-of-factly, "If you panic, your heart beats faster, it'll be over quicker."

"Wh-what?" I huffed out and struggled weakly against the restraints on my wrists.

"You really should have heeded my sister's advice." Klaus rasped, with a tickled expression, "Our favourite 'roid-raging super hunter did a number on you. Not that it matters now." Klaus crouched down before me as he added, "Fascinating. Everything. It's all in the blood."

"Rosanna?" Tyler's voice was somewhere across from me, somewhere by the door. My eyes were hazing over.

"Tyler! Help me!" I huffed out and continued to futilely pull at the bindings.

"He can't." Klaus declared, "He needs to go fetch me more empty blood bags. About three litres worth, please, Tyler."

"Tyler…please…get, ahhh, Kol." I groaned.

"No, Tyler." Klaus uttered, with a delighted smirk, and rose to direct Tyler, "Get the bags. Forget the girl and get the bags. Now."

Tyler turned instantly and left the room. My resolve crumpled. I have to calm down. How do I get out? I didn't even have the energy to scream.

Klaus knelt back down beside me and uttered in feigned concern, "Kol, eh? And what exactly is Kol to do? Oh, darling girl, don't tell me you fell for the bad boy…Kol is the one who turned me on to your divine taste. Of the…effects. He's the one who gave me the idea to try phoenix blood over doppelganger blood. We're going to have such fun, you and I."

I winced and scorned, "So, that's it? You're just gonna bleed me dry?"

"Yes, but don't worry." Klaus uttered calmly, "It'll be completely painless. As the last drop is drawn, you'll simply fall asleep. And then, if you don't die, we'll start all over again. I have big plans for you. Big plans for whatever you will produce; hybrids, souped-up vampires. It's all very exciting, isn't it? Now, before you lose consciousness, I see your eyes are getting ever heavier, is there anything you'd like me to pass on to my dear little brother, a final farewell?"

"Rot in hell." I seethed.

"Succinct." Klaus declared, "Sweet dreams, Rosanna. It's been fun."

* * *

My heavy head fell down sharply to my chest and the fall jerked me back awake. I was struggling to keep my eyes open. I tried to summon flames. Nothing. I couldn't. The power, and the life inside of me was seeping out. The light was almost snuffed. It was too hard.

"You are quite impossible to keep alive." Elijah informed me, coolly, nonchalantly, "I said it once. I'll say it a thousand times."

I scoffed and huffed out a pain laugh. "You...help."

"I would love to, Rosanna, but alas, I am not actually here. You are indeed hallucinating." Elijah declared and sat before me, on the edge of the coffee table, "And might I add, I am flattered to be the one to see you out in your final moments. I will try my utmost to keep the 'I told you so's' to a minimum, but I am practically choking on them."

"You don't...hear me?" I huffed out, "Feel me?"

"What? Dying?" Elijah clarified. He leant forward and caressed my cheek as he said, "I most certainly do. It would be quite the challenge to compartmentalise what you are going through. It looks like quite the horror show from here. I can only speculate that I am in fact doing a stellar job at ignoring you."

"Wow." I huffed out, and turned away from him, firmly shutting my eyes. I scoffed and pointed in his general direction as I scorned, "I want...someone else. Anyone. You...you suck!"

"What the hell?" Tyler hissed in my ear, "I'm trying!"

"Ty…what-what are you doing?" I huffed out, weakly, as I opened my eyes and it finally registered that he was there, in front of me, yanking on my restraints.

"Sssh." Tyler whispered as he succeeded in tearing them off, "You're gonna be okay."

"Tyler…" I mumbled, and pointed weakly.

"So much for that sire bond." Klaus said.

"I'm not your little bitch anymore." Tyler declared, turning sharply to face him.

"How did you break the sire bond?" Klaus asked.

"By breaking every bone in my body, a hundred times for the girl I love." Tyler seethed.

"Pffft. What? You only threatened cheerleader's for me!" I scoffed quietly to myself.

"That's impossible." Klaus rasped.

"Is it?" Tyler scoffed, "Or maybe real love is stronger than fake loyalty. But what would you know about that?"

"You know, you should be thanking me." Klaus scorned, "I gave you a gift. I took away your misery."

"You didn't give a crap about me!" Tyler barked back, "You just didn't want to be alone."

Tyler returned to me, and helped me up off the chair. He threw my arm around his shoulders and whispered to me, "I've got you, Ro." Klaus flashed before us. I slammed down to the ground. My head took a blow. I heard Klaus bid farewell to Tyler. I think I heard Stefan's voice. I closed my eyes and was met with darkness once again, and peace, and stillness.

* * *

My eyes opened begrudgingly, they struggled to remain open long enough to focus. Where was I? Everything ached as though I'd been trampled by a horde of elephants. Weakly, I halfheartedly attempted to sit up but found myself gently pushed back down onto my back by an arm sticking out to the left. I tilted my head against the pillow to see Elijah sat beside me on the bed also, his arm joined the other across his chest. He was casually resting there, didn't even open his eyes.

"Ugh. You." I huffed out.

His brow peaked. He opened his eyes and glared at me, and then stated, "Yes. Me."

"I feel awful." I coughed.

"You don't look terribly healthy either." Elijah noted and requested, "Can you remain horizontal for one moment?"

I answered his rhetorical question by attempting to arise once more, this time in a shot of anxiety as the memories flooded back into my mind; why I was less than delighted to see him. What was real? Is this real? Am I dead? He once again gently pushed me back down, this time sitting up to establish sincerity. He felt my forehead, frowning at the heat that radiated from me.

"Please. Just this once, listen to me." He rasped.

I heeded his words, but only for the amount of time it took for him to cross the room. I glanced around the room and realised I was in a bedroom, it was night time, there was a view over the town square. I felt a bandage against my right temple, and dropped my stinging hands down, they were scraped up; I remembered why. I struggled my way over to the full-length mirror and took a sharp intake of breath as I caught sight of myself. I was battered and bruised. I lifted my t-shirt up, or rather Elijah's t-shirt, and shuddered at the shades of black and blue beneath. I tucked my hair back behind my ear to get a better look at the bandage covering my right temple; there was dry blood in my hair. My left cheek was cut. My chin was bruised. A scrape or two on my knees; all from fighting Alaric off. My arms were bruised from the blood 'donation'.

"Your blood, I imagine, is what heals you. Klaus drained it for himself, for his latest attempt at playing Dr Frankenstein, hence why you're taking much longer to regenerate." Elijah explained and handed something over to me, a drink of some sort, "This will help."

"Where am I?" I asked him.

"You are safe." He replied, and put the drink into my hands, and began to pace.

I took one sip and then uttered, "Stefan. I-I heard Stefan there-"

"Killing my brother? Correct." Elijah stated, monotonously.

I dumped the glass down on the mantle for fear of dropping it; the realisation of what that statement truly meant smacked me square in the chest and knocked the wind out of me. I exhaled sharply and struggled to control my increasingly erratic breathing; Tyler. Caroline? Stefan? God...my heart even ached for Damon! I huffed out, "Oh, God."

Elijah flashed before me, compelled to pull me close; his strong embrace surrounded me and permitted me to lose control. He held my head against his chest and he uttered that I was okay, it was all going to be alright, I was safe now. He was gone. Klaus was gone.

"What do you mean, he's gone?" I finally asked him, once my breathing had returned to regularity, "Left town gone? Or…"

"Gone. But not technically dead, sparing your friends. He's in a box. He shan't bother you anymore." Elijah exhaled, wiping away stray tears, gently, as he spoke.

He stepped away but his arm was grabbed by my hands. He looked surprised at my touch, and his eyes shot back to mine.

"You didn't stop them." I rasped.

"It never crossed my mind to. I didn't know what was happening until it was done." Elijah said, sadly, "I'm sorry that he did this to you."

"I'm still alive, right?" I scoffed.

"Barely." He scorned back tersely.

" _You_ didn't do this, Elijah." I uttered to him, trying to find his eyes again but he was somewhere else, "And I'm fine. I'll be fine. None of this is on you."

"Stop." Elijah snatched my wrist, finally relinquishing my hold on him, and rasped in a harsh tone that caught me off guard, "I don't need you to do that. I don't need you to make this okay for me. I'm not here for another dose of your misplaced absolution."

"Wh-" I huffed out. My tone dropped to match his, "Then, why are you here?"

He stepped up to me, and he caressed my cheek, gently. His eyes avoided mine, and bore into the bruising on my face, and my neck; a flicker of anger was suppressed from his expression; he composed himself. He looked at me. He pulled me into him, ever closer and my heart completely stopped. I thought for one fleeting moment, that his lips were going to meet mine. He simply stated, "You are free."

He stepped back, picked up his jacket and wandered over to the doorway. He told me to take my time, to not leave until I was ready, and then he left.


	42. Midnight Mystery Tours

**Mystic Falls Hospital**

Jeremy offered the only seat in the room to me. I slumped back into the chair beside Elena's hospital bed; my body was still weak, but my watch over Elena was fierce enough. Jeremy took up his sentry position, leant against the wall, occasionally muttering something of an answer to my incessant questions: What the hell happened? How did this happen? Why did this happen? Where the hell is everyone else? Meredith interrupted our back and forth by chapping lightly on the glass window and beckoning us to come outside into the hallway. Jeremy followed after me, casting one last look of concern back at Elena, resting soundly in her bed.

"She is going to be fine." Meredith assured us, "She got a little banged up today. She did hit her head, but it was just a slight concussion. Nothing to worry about."

"But she wasn't responding." Jeremy shot back, instantly, "There was a lot of blood."

"I know. That must have been terrifying. But honestly, Jeremy, she's okay." Meredith said, kindly.

"Do you know why she fainted?" I asked her, seeking an answer beyond 'how the heck am I supposed to know? I'm not a doctor'.

"She just-she's been through a lot." Meredith offered, vaguely, and asked, "Is there anyone you want to call?"

"Just her." Jeremy said with a shrug, gesturing to me.

Meredith dismissed herself and I sighed heavily as she walked away. I told Jeremy, reluctantly, "We need to call them."

* * *

Jeremy handed me the phone immediately after dialling Damon's cell. I glared at him, and reluctantly took the phone off him.

"Yellow." Damon greeted me.

"Okay, don't freak out." I uttered.

Damon exhaled over-dramatically for a good few seconds, and then said, "Littlest Gilbert. I _just_ saved your life, literally a few hours ago, for the love of God, is that really the longest you can stay out of mortal danger? Are you for real? Wait a minute, there, you're on speaker, let's give Stefan _and_ Klaus' desiccated body a good laugh too. Hey [knock knock] Klaus-y boy! You're gonna love this! Guess who's in mortal peril once again!"

"What's he saying?" Jeremy asked me, as Damon waffled on.

"What do you think he's saying? Nothing of value or use! Just hot air." I said to Jeremy and returned to Damon, "Thank you for the dramatic build up and wasted time, Damon. Elena fainted, and she fell down the stairs, but she's okay. She's at the hospital, and Meredith said-"

"You did what?!" Damon barked over me.

"J-Jeremy took her to the hospital and called me on the way." I informed him.

"What? You weren't there? You weren't at home?" Stefan interrupted me.

"No? What does that matter?" I said, "I'm here now. Can we focus?"

"It matters." Stefan declared, "You almost died and Elijah said he was taking you home." He spoke over at Damon and said, "You said we could trust him."

"Hey, he responded to her weird psychic SOS call and he didn't stop the Goodnight Klaus efforts, what was I supposed to think?" Damon shot back, "You're mad on a technicality? She's fine! You're fine, right Barbie? Well, not mentally, you're still an accomplice to your brother's idiocy."

"He-look, forget all that, when Jeremy found our sister unconscious at the bottom of the stairs he called 911, that's not idiocy, that's what you do!" I hissed down the phone.

Jeremy looked confused and gestured to know what the hell was going on. I just shrugged in response. I was so confused by all the different threads in this conversation, and still feeling rundown, and really wanting a nap.

"-Not when you have a parade of vampires at your disposal!" Damon whined.

"Every remaining Original is going to want Elena dead to stop Alaric." Stefan explained, clearly, "She's a sitting duck in there."

"Bar the one that's taking you on midnight mystery tours!" Damon sneered.

"I am here." I assured them, "And I am fine. I can protect her."

"Forgive me, isn't the majority of your magical super-blood chilling in Klaus' fridge?" Damon scorned.

"Meredith wants to keep her here for observation." I said.

"Rosanna. Hang up the phone and get Elena home." Damon demanded, "We're on our way!"

I hung up the phone and looked at Jeremy, now felling a little on the worried side.

"What is it?" He asked.

"We need to go. Now. You get her. I'll call for back up on the way." I told him and led him back into her room.

"What? Who?" He asked.

"Um. Everyone?!" I uttered and sped-walked over to Elena's bedside and shook her gently, whispering, "Elena. Hey? It's Rosie. We-we have to go. Take Jeremy's arm." Jeremy wrapped Elena's arm around his neck and he heaved her up into his arms.

"Where are we going?" Jeremy whispered, as I led him down the hall, further away from the front entrance.

"Service entrance." I whispered back, "There's an exit down by Patient Records."

"What did Damon say?" Jeremy asked.

"A few Originals might have Elena in their cross-hairs. Killing Elena means killing the super-jacked-up vampire hunter their mom created, you know, Alaric." I whispered back, "So...back to base camp."

"I don't have my car. I rode here in the ambulance." Jeremy said and asked, "How'd you get here so fast?"

"I, uh...I borrowed a ride." I whispered and pressed the unlock button on my keys; the headlights of a Porsche flickered in the darkness to greet us.

Jeremy stood with his mouth open in bemusement for a minute, and finally scoffed, "What the hell?!"

"Hey! Pressing danger! Remember? Get in!" I hissed at him, as I opened the door and pulled back the front seat.

* * *

 **Matt Donovan's House**

I could see the welcoming committee gathered outside the house as we pulled up into the driveway of Matt's House; Tyler, Matt and Caroline had responded to the bat signal in record time. Caroline had suggested the detour to Matt's house, the easiest to defend; our house was burnt to the ground, the Salvatore House had no living owner, everyone under the sun had been invited into Tyler's at one soiree or another, and Caroline had some of her very human family in town.

"Um...what?!" Matt scoffed at the Porsche pulling up in into his driveway.

"Real subtle right?" Jeremy laughed as Tyler helped him get Elena out.

"The whole street'll know something's up." Tyler scoffed.

"Hey, maybe I won the lottery or something." Matt laughed to him.

"Just how pressing is this danger?" Tyler asked, "We got time for a spin?"

"She's real stingy with her stolen car, she wouldn't let me drive it." Jeremy said.

"Holy crap, Ro." Matt laughed, "You think you know a person."

"I didn't steal it. I borrowed it!" I scorned back.

* * *

Elena sauntered through to the living room, curled up beside me on the couch, and asked, "Where is everyone?"

"Tyler and Caroline got a call from their moms. Um, Jeremy is getting the food." I explained and told her, "I'm sorry I wasn't there."

"How were you supposed to know I was going to take a nose dive down the stairs? God, everyone knows right? So embarrassing." Elena said, "And hey, you were...dealing with your own thing? Are you okay? Stefan told me what Klaus did-"

"It's okay." I said, "I'm fine. I'm...gonna be fine."

Elena nodded for another couple of beats, and maintained eye contact with me. It was clear that she was struggling to hold something back; she bit her cheek to physically keep the words down. She pursed her lips and nodded again. I simply stared back at my big sister, with tired eyes, and waited for the inevitable.

"I'm trying really hard to do the whole 'be their sister, not their mom' thing." Elena blurted out, "So…I'm just gonna say my hypocritical piece, and then that's that. It's out there. And you can ignore it, or whatever. I just have to say it. Okay?"

"Okay?" I uttered.

"I'm glad that for whatever reason, somewhat beyond our comprehension, perhaps for the best, whatever, who knows, you have an Original Vampire watching your back." Elena said, tentatively.

"Yes." I uttered after silence enveloped us for an uncomfortable moment, and added , "It has proven...helpful."

Elena nodded again, and then asked, "How did Klaus get the idea to take your blood in the first place?"

"No." I shot back and shook my head, "That's not on Elijah."

"So, what then? How else?" Elena asked, "'Cause all I can think is that he bit you?! And spread the good news?"

"No." I said, vehemently, "He wouldn't-he didn't!"

"Rosie?!" Elena implored, "What the hell happened? There's literally no other explanation!"

"Okay. No. No simple...obvious one." I muttered.

"You don't have to defend him." Elena said, "Maybe this weird connection thing is clouding your judgement, and it seems like...I don't know, he's perfect or something? And can't do anything wrong? Is that it? You can't throw vervain grenades at him and you can't turn on him, tell anyone when he's hurt you?"

"I slept with Kol!" I blurted out, a little louder than I ever thought I would.

Elena stared back at me, blankly, and then her eyes squinted, and she took her head back a little, and she tried to say something, but she didn't, or couldn't.

"Elijah-he-he helped me rest up. He didn't stop them from killing Klaus. He just got me out of there, and he didn't look back. He didn't bite me. He wouldn't. It's like...he was just protecting me. He would never hurt me because...well, no, he just wouldn't and he would literally feel it too. It's...uh, I can't even explain it. I just know-I feel when he's hurt." I babbled and then reiterated, "What happened to me had nothing to do with Elijah."

"You...and Kol?" Elena finally uttered.

"Once...uh, okay, two other times there was-No. I, uh...once. We slept together once." I muttered, and propped my head in my hands.

"Is this like...a thing?" Elena asked.

"No." I huffed out and rubbed my exhausted face, "It was a...mistake. Obviously. And uh...weird."

"The sex was weird?" She asked.

"Elena. No." I sighed out.

"What the-why the hell are you doing... _Kol_?" She hissed, "He threatened to kill Jeremy!"

"He played ball with him!" I groaned, "Look. I know! It was a mistake. It was a _severe_ lapse in judgement. I was sad!"

"When I'm sad, I don't screw thousand year old homicidal maniacs!" Elena hissed at me, "Oh dear God, can we rewind and go back to when I thought you were screwing Elijah, it was such a simple time! Elijah. I get it. He's your white knight every other week. He's noble. He gives you a Porsche. But Kol?! KOL?!"

"You made out with Damon!" I hissed back, "Get back down off that goddamn high horse!"

Elena wheezed and said, "Nuh-uh, you have surpassed my screw-up, Ro. I set the bar, and you were all 'hey, hold my beer!'"

"Okay, I will give you the inappropriate age-gap, and the family connection to the devil incarnate. But Damon has his own homicidal tendencies, and he is Stefan's brother, and he's no spring chicken himself!" I shot back.

Elena suddenly burst out laughing, and buried her face in her hands. She peeked through and I felt my own steely composure crack and wobble.

"Oh my god." Elena laughed out, "I'm such a hypocrite!"

"Well, you did preface it, back there." I chuckled.

"I'm sorry. I should really sort out my own problems before I jump on yours." Elena said, "I can't put it off anymore, I need to make a choice."

"I mean...is it really a choice?" I asked her, "Sorry, I guess Damon has the hot brooding thing. He can sometimes get a good one-liner in there. But, come on, it has to be Stefan? And I'm not just saying that because Caroline inducted me into hashtag Team-"

Stefan suddenly barrelled his way through the front door, and surveyed the house rapidly until he found her.

"Stefan." Elena huffed out, and rushed her way over into his embrace.

"You okay?" He asked her, burying his head in her neck.

"Yeah." She nodded.

* * *

The first of the Originals had found their way to Matt's house, seeking a compromise, rather than the timely death of my sister. Elijah sought an audience with Elena, to propose another path.

"All we need to do is take that stake away from him." Elijah explained to the room, "Once he's been disarmed, the weapon's in my possession, my family will scatter to the ends of the earth, and Alaric will follow us."

"And you'll just…run?" Stefan asked him.

"We've done it before." Elijah said simply, "Klaus and Rebekah spent the better part of 1000 years evading my father. What's another half century while Elena's able to live out the rest of her natural life?"

"We finally stopped him, Elijah." Elena said, "After everything he's done to us, I can't just let you bring him back."

"I give you my word, Elena." Elijah implored, "I will not revive Klaus within yours, nor even within your children's lifetimes. Perhaps it'll finally teach him some manners."

"Why should she trust you?" Matt asked him, "All you've done is screw her over."

"And for that I'm deeply ashamed. But know this, she could have been dead the instant I walked through that door tonight." Elijah offered, "So, Elena, I leave it to you to make the decision whether to trust me or not."

"Not!" Damon whined from the speakerphone, "Hello! Did that concussion give you brain damage? His lunatic siblings will kill you the first chance they get!"

"Rebekah and Kol will honour the terms." Elijah rebutted, "If you return Klaus' body to us, Elena will come to no harm. Do we have a deal?"

"No. No! No. No. No. No, did I mention, no?" Damon whined.

"Elena, it's up to you." Stefan said.

"Oh, come on!" Damon whined in the background.

"Why do you want Klaus' body?" I asked him.

Elijah looked at me for the first time, and I struggled to mask everything that was racing through my mind. Why do you want the body of a murderer? He killed Jenna. He took Stefan. He hooked me up to blood bags and tried to bleed me dry. To name but a few.

"He's my brother." Elijah stated shortly, "We remain together."

Elena waited for my gaze to find hers, and I gave her a small shrug, signalling I wasn't going to fight her on this. It was her decision.

"We have a deal." Elena said.

The entire room exhaled and stewed in the idea. I turned to Jeremy and said, "Call Alaric. Tell him where Damon is supposed to be headed, the woods off Route 12. Stefan, Caroline, Elijah and I will ambush him there. Rebekah can collect Klaus...from his actual location."

"Any objections?" Stefan asked the room.

"Yes!" Damon whined, "Many! Who put the Littlest Gilbert in charge?"

"Call Rebekah. Tell her where you're headed." I demanded and hung up the phone.

* * *

 **Woodland - Route 12**

The silent car ride had been excruciating, the walk into the woods was only marginally less so. Caroline had tried to make small talk a few times, but even she couldn't pull those teeth and opted for some more silence. Stefan finally suggested we split up and assume our positions; they'd take the North side, Elijah and I would take the South. I sauntered out ahead on my own, immediately, and put a little distance between us. Until, now completely alone, he flashed to my side.

"You object so deeply?" Elijah asked me.

"It's Elena's choice." I replied tersely.

"Rosanna, I can't go further. I need a word." Elijah stated, in frustration, and stopped in his tracks.

I stopped and glanced back at him in confusion. I said, "We don't have time."

"It shan't take long." Elijah said.

"Why do I feel like I'm about to be scolded?" I scoffed.

Elijah sighed deeply, and then stated, "In a way, you are."

A light bulb flickered on, and I insisted, "It was an emergency, and I'm a very safe driver, and your car is fine, as you probably saw, out front. And I would have asked before taking your extremely fancy car, but you left very dramatically, and I was going to park it up later, you know, when the emergent situation...subsided. And it's not. So...shall we?"

"I do not care about the car." Elijah stated tersely, and parked his hands on his hips, "I do not have an omnipresent link to any of my cars."

I could feel the anger radiating from him, and I could sense futility in his struggle to hold it back, to hide it from me.

"Any of them?" I scoffed back, "Did you even notice it was gone?"

"I spoke with Kol." Elijah stated. As his words scraped their way out, I could feel my own reaction grow to mirror his. He informed me, "He boasted the effects of your blood, and from there you found yourself hooked up to blood bags, headed for certain death."

"Hmm." I hummed and said, "That's still up for debate. I'd go with _uncertain_ death."

"Rosanna-" Elijah sighed.

" _Klaus_ did this to me." I interrupted him, sharply, "Not Kol."

"Because of Kol. You would think that were an obvious enough red flag." Elijah said, with disdain, "My family continues to cause strife to yours, irrespective of who we decide to apportion blame to. This deal is the closest we can get to all parties appeased. Now, I'm doing my best, but there is only so much that I can do when you are not. I implore you to cease your recklessness; cease throwing yourself head first into danger and operate with a little common sense from here on out."

"Okay. I'm lost." I uttered.

"None of it is real." Elijah informed me, callously, "What you feel for Kol. You fundamentally destroy one another. You are cursed to be drawn in like this so that you don't. I am very protective of you. Why? You're not my family. It isn't real. It's all in our heads. A quirk of our creation."

"Okay. I officially don't care what you have to say." I scoffed, and stormed away from him.

"You don't care because you are not programmed to." Elijah scorned and flashed before me, stepping in my way every time I attempted to leave, "Don't you find it odd how many of his indiscretions you so willingly forgive without a second thought? How some millennia of women before you could not hope to tame him? But you…a girl he has known outside the bedroom for all of what? Less than a day? You were the one to fire cupid's arrow into his buttocks and fundamentally change everything about him?"

"Oh, my god. You don't know what you're talking about-" I uttered.

"I understand that it hurts. It must feel very real to you, but it is not." Elijah implored, "I am not looking to hurt you, Rosanna. I am not. Quite the contrary."

"Then stop." I scorned back at him, "Just stop! Stop coming for me. Turn off your SOS radar and leave me alone! You are officially off the hook! Next time I steam-roller my way right into mortal danger, it is not on you to come and rescue me! Or berate me afterwards! I'm not drawn to Kol! Not everyone is drawn together by some mystical creation link-thing, no, that's just our crappy deal! _My choices_ , as stupid and as ill-advised as they may be, are my own! And I don't have to justify them to you!"

"You need to grow up." Elijah declared, "Fast. Before your luck runs out."

"What part of this is lucky?!" I scorned after him as he disappeared further out into the dark woods.

* * *

"So…Kol?" Caroline whispered to me, as we waited not-so-patiently in our hiding spots.

I had texted Stefan and requested that we shuffle up the teams, and not require any explanation for requesting so. Stefan had obliged, and swapped places with me. I began to think I had it so much better just stewing in angry silence with Elijah.

"Not now, Caroline." I whispered back.

"We were trying not to listen, honestly, but you guys were...really going for it." She whispered, "I got the impression that Elijah was supposed to be this real cool, composed guy, but man was he pissed at you. Or his brother? Or himself? Or the world? I don't know. It was a lot, wasn't it?"

"Caroline." I huffed out.

"I mean, Kol. Come on. I get it, like, externally." Caroline whispered, "But he's been really murdery, and then there's the whole 'being the brother of the guy that tried to kill us all' thing, and the-"

"Can. We. Not." I hissed back.

"Okay. Fine." Caroline whispered, and sat back a little at my snap, "What is taking so long? He should be here by now."

* * *

Stefan had finally appeared in the dark, silent, Alaric-less forest, and relayed his phone conversation with Damon. Elijah had disappeared in a gust of wind to find his sister. Alaric had found Damon. He'd stabbed the white oak stake into Klaus' chest and ended him. His body was engulfed in flames. Caroline screamed out Tyler's name and sprinted off to find him; he was the only of our friends headed for certain death. Stefan had embraced me as I stood there in the silent forest, in shock. He assured me that Klaus was lying. He was gonna be fine. Damon was going to be fine. Caroline too. Tyler...

Upon arriving back at Matt's house, we were greeted by Jeremy, looking incredibly sheepish. Stefan needed to see Elena, to tell her that Damon was too far away to say goodbye. She needed to call him. He was all alone. Jeremy then revealed she wasn't here. Matt was getting her out of town.

* * *

"Matt? Where are you guys? You should have been back by now? One of you, call me back!" I scorned into my phone and tossed it on to the couch. I flopped over the back of it and crossed my arms harshly across my chest.

"Still no word?" Jeremy asked.

"Nothing." I muttered, and exhaled slowly. I groaned, "I can't do this again, Jer."

"You say goodbye to him?" Jeremy asked me, "We should have this down to a T by now, but I just couldn't."

"He's not dying." I said, with a quiver in my voice, "There has to be a quota on how many people we can lose. Okay. Stefan is going to meet them half-way. And then he's coming back. With them."

"I think you've done enough." Jeremy insisted, "How'd you even get in here?"

I peeked my head up, wholly confused at his response, and looked into the hallway. Jeremy was talking to thin air.

"I don't understand." Jeremy said, and then his eyes widened, "Oh my god. You're a ghost. But if you're dead…it means, Elena-"

"Jeremy?" I asked him, "Who are you talking to?"

Jeremy slowly turned to face me and uttered, "Alaric."

"What-but…what?" I spluttered out and clambered over the back of the sofa, and searched the empty space before him.

"He-he's gone. Elena...she's dead." Jeremy whispered.


	43. A Certain Way

**09:00 - Salvatore House**

"Jer. Stop. You're making me dizzy." I muttered.

Jeremy stopped wearing a track into the carpet, and returned from wherever his mind had disappeared to. He sighed heavily and flapped his arms about as he told me, "I watched Vicki go through this. She was a mess. Her emotions were all over the place. All of these old memories came flooding back."

"Yeah. I remember. My forearm remembers. Vividly." I scorned up at him, and tilted my head towards the stairs, " _She's_ not Vicki."

"No. She's not. She's _Elena_. She will act like everything's okay, so no one worries about her and no one knows that she needs help." Jeremy ranted, "Sound familiar?"

I side-stepped the personal dig, and told him, "She clearly has help. We're all here. She has us as well as the Vampire A-Team on her side. She's going to be fine." I then sought after the team's resident miracle worker, and asked, "Have you talked to Bonnie?"

"Yeah." Jeremy said, "She said that when I was shot, she made some plea to the witch spirits to bring me back, and they listened."

"Yeah, but the consequences were horrible." I scoffed, remembering our little rendezvous in Elijah's memories less than fondly.

"And what could be more horrible than Elena turning into a vampire?" Jeremy scorned, "I don't know about you, but I need my big sister. Not another one of them."

On cue, Damon stormed down the stairs and straight out the front door, without as much as a glance our way. Stefan appeared at the top of the stairs and beckoned us up. She was finally awake, and now aware of what had happened to her. I rose up from my chair and embraced my brother, tightly and I told him, "Hey. We're gonna find a way out of this. Everything's gonna be okay."

"I hope so." Jeremy sighed and lead the way upstairs to see Elena.

* * *

 **11:00 - Mystic Falls High School - Gymnasium**

I had invited Elena to come with me to the gym, to maybe burn off some of her skittish energy whilst we waited for Bonnie to swoop in and save the day. She already had a whole day planned out with Stefan. She joked that she could compel the Dance Team to take me back now, if I wanted. I asked her if we were seriously joking about this already. She sighed and said she wasn't really sure what else to do.

I flicked through my playlist and skipped through a bunch of tracks; nothing was really floating my boat. Come on, pick something, it's just a warm up. I played a couple of excerpts, and skipped them just as quickly, until I stumbled upon a remix of Summertime Sadness.

"Okay." I whispered and began to stretch it out as Lana Del Rey's sultry voice sang it out.

The movements that the song warranted were slow, ethereal, wispy, until that chorus hit, and the beat dropped. I couldn't hear the words anymore, only the music, and the next position, the next move. I didn't even have to think about it; it all fell into place; this was my bliss. The door to the gymnasium creaked open suddenly, and I skidded to a startled halt and stopped the track.

"Oh! I'm so sorry, Ro!" Freddie laughed, removing his own blasting headphones, "Gym wasn't booked, thought I'd chance my luck. I'm sorry!"

"It's okay!" I laughed, "You scared the crap out of me."

"I can come back later." He suggested.

"No. Don't be silly, stay!" I said, "Please?"

"Okay." Freddie said, with a little smile, "Okay."

* * *

"Huh, so Dan's still a bit of an ass-hole." I declared, after catching up on all the latest entries in the troubled romance of Freddie and Daniel.

"You're not wrong there. But he's…the damn love of my life, so…I'm making allowances." Freddie said, matter-of-factly. He was about to pick up the aux cable, to have his turn at picking the tracks, when he turned back and asked, "What about you?"

"What about me?" I replied.

"You. Rosanna Gilbert." Freddie said, with a spreading grin, "Look at you asking every question under the sun and answering none. What is going on in your love life?"

I snorted and said, "Uh. Nothing. Actually completely nothing, in fact, probably minus nothing, that's how much nothing is going on over here."

"So. Convincing." Freddie laughed, "Come on, you have to give me something, I just gave you a novel."

"And don't I know it." I laughed back.

"Ro. Come on. I'm guessing with Tyler moving away, he's out of the picture?"

Moving away? That's what Caroline told everyone? I guess that's better than magically murdered by a sire line. I checked myself and then told him, honestly, if not elegantly, "Yeah. No. He's...god, no, yeah, gone. He and Caroline are together though, I think."

"Aw. Cute. I can see that. What about Matt?" Freddie asked, "Or didn't he have a thing with that new girl? Rebekah?"

"No." I replied, "Actually, I don't know about that. I doubt it. And no, Matt and I are friends."

"This is painful, Ro, do we need to go out? Cast a wide net? We could head up to Whitmore, get you a cute Pre-Med boy." Freddie suggested and laughed with me. He wouldn't let it go. He nudged me one last time and asked, "There must be someone occupying a tiny little space in your mind?"

"No one you know." I blurted out and regretted that tiny nugget of information slipping out, immediately.

"Fine. That's fine. I don't need a name. I just need a story." Freddie implored.

I rolled my eyes and gave in. I sighed heavily and asked, "Quick story. Then, back to dancing?" I waited all of one microsecond for his sharp nod, and then said, "It's not even a story. It's...I don't know what it is...probably nothing, but...I thought this guy and I had this connection. We looked out for each other, and we always had some idea of what the other person was feeling, or...up to?" I spoke slowly and carefully, very cautious of sounding like a complete lunatic, "After Jenna died...and then Mr Saltzman left. He was her boyfriend and checked in on us a lot...it wasn't just his super interesting lessons I missed, anyway, I was sad...and I slept with this guy's brother."

Freddie took a sharp intake of breath. He huffed out, "Ro. Sa. Na."

"Don't even get me started on you-" I laughed.

"Nope. Let's not. I'm sorry! Continue! I'm invested. I'm shipping you already. Go!" Freddie hissed back.

"He...said, in a roundabout way, and maybe implied, that it bothered him. A lot." I said, and scratched my neck as I thought further about the words that had just left my muddled mind, "I don't know. And Elena's been...sick and I'm...I don't know, I haven't seen him since we fought, and I'm a little worried I won't...again. It's so weird and hard to explain."

"It's not weird at all." Freddie offered, kindly, "He was always there for you, and you need him now, but there's been a dynamic shift, some truths have come to light, and jealousy happens to be a fabulous colour on this guy."

"See, I don't know if that's even the truth." I said, "His brother's a bit of uh...a bad seed."

"Okay. So, you're thinking he could just be looking out for you again, torn between family and friendship?" Freddie asked.

"Maybe." I muttered.

"Hmm. I'm thinking...you wouldn't have brought him up, if you didn't feel a _certain way_ about him." Freddie teased.

"What." I scoffed, "No. I-You asked what's occupying my brain space, and that conundrum has been resident for a little while. I was answering that specific question."

"Okay. Purely from a platonic perspective, what is he like?" Freddie asked intently.

"See...I actually don't really know him that well, when I think about it." I said, pensively, "He's intelligent. Strong. Caring. Witty."

"Hot?" Freddie inserted.

I glared back at him and then slowly nodded.

"Paint a picture for me, what does he look like?" Freddie asked.

"Um...dark brown eyes. Dark hair. Impeccably dressed at all times. Taller than me."

"That's not hard." Freddie scoffed.

"Oi!" I scorned.

"Sorry. Again. How old is he?" Freddie asked.

I stifled the little smile and stated, vaguely, "He's...older. "

"Our school?" Freddie probed.

"No. Whitmore." I lied and reminded him, "And that ends the quick story portion of the day. Go, pick a song."

"Is it Adam's brother? Daniel Hayes?!" Freddie gasped, suddenly, "Oh. No. You did the nasty with Adam?!"

"NO." I barked back, "God, no. How is Adam a bad seed?"

"Well...okay. Yeah. I guess." Freddie hummed.

"Stop guessing." I said, "You won't get it."

He sighed and finally took up the aux cable and he selected 'Pink – Just Like Fire'. I glanced up at the ceiling and scrunched up my brow at the cosmic fates, and mentally asked them...really? He paused the song, and asked, "What's that face for? You love Pink!"

"I uh…" I laughed, "I just listened to her a lot recently. It's fine!"

"No such thing as too much Pink." Freddie noted as he hit play, "Pretty sure that's a direct quote from you."

"What are we doing?" I asked him.

"Whatever the hell we want to!" Freddie laughed and started out in first position.

He adopted an elegant routine for the majority of the first verse and then took it on a jazz spin. I laughed heartily and couldn't hold back anymore; I joined in for the first run, taking his lead. And then that chorus exploded, and we joined up together, into a series of fouettés, lifts, and technical elegance. I took the lead on the second verse and we went a little swing dance on it. For the breakdown, we went all out hip hop. We span across the floor, a controlled pirouette lead us into the slower key change, and then we busted back out of elegance as soon as the chorus once more.

* * *

Freddie and I had somehow ended up doing _The Time of My Life_ dance from Dirty Dancing. We were on our backs on the crash mat, laughing hysterically at our latest attempt at the beautiful, iconic lift.

"I think you need to be Patrick this time." Freddie laughed heartily, "I give in."

"You're on. Hang on. Let me just check my phone a second." I laughed and rummaged around in my buzzing bag.

Damon was calling me, and he'd clearly changed his caller ID on my phone at some point. There he was, posing, hanging out the window of his muscle car, with a pair of RayBan's on. Wow. So. Cool.

"Ooo, is it tall, dark, and strong?" Freddie teased, as he took a sip of his water.

"Absolutely not." I uttered tersely, and sauntered away a little to accept his call, "Don't play around in my phone, you weirdo."

"Don't have your birthday as your password, you simpleton. Where the hell have you been?" Damon barked down the line.

"Who crapped in your Cheerios this morning?" I scoffed.

"Stefan. Elena. Caroline. Rebekah. All GONE. Alaric has been quite the busy bee this morning." Damon groaned, "So, I ask again, where the HELL were you?!"

"Are you serious?" I whined.

"Get home." He barked, "NOW."


	44. This Is For You, And Me

_Dear Jenna,_

 _The grief counsellor (yes, it's still Sergeant Pit Stains) has only one trick in his little brown notepad. Write a letter. Burn it. He has suggested the exact same approach will help me to work through your death, as it did to work through the death of my parents. He is either completely apathetic or incredibly naive to believe that a mere 18 months have now passed since they have passed and I've made it, sort of, through...well, anything. None of us have._

 _Truth be told, I didn't write to you for the simple fact that I did not want to write to you. I don't want to un-box anything. I went off the rails, one could say, in my own little way. And I don't want to go back to that place. It's just...anger, there, and nothing else. You died on April 28th, 2010. My parents died on May 23rd, 2009. We didn't even get to have you for a full year, before our family broke apart. Again._

 _Anyway, I didn't intentionally burn all of the letters that I wrote to my mom; that one's on Alaric...somewhat. I'll give him a pass on that. I still actually have a few of them stuffed in my locker, you know, just incase I fancied a little mid-morning stab in the heart, that's how I got to fixate on those dates._

 _Some small part of me wants to believe that you are leaning over my shoulder, reading this. So, if mom is with you, please tell her to look away now. We can always catch up in the next depressing update._

 _You ready? Elena transitioned last night. It is now November 8th, 2010. Your niece died on the night of November 6th, and last night...Elena drank some guy's blood, and she became a vampire. Bonnie has ran out of miracles, and her Grams paid a horrible price for exceeding that quota._

 _Elena tried to adopt Stefan's bunny blood diet, and her body rejected it abhorrently. She got a lot on my comforter...yeah. It was gnarly. Also, just to wrap it all up in a nice neat bow, and to make sure that there is no time to digest or adjust to any of this, a vampire hunter just strolled into town, and killing vampires is not just a past time of his, he means business, like...cutting up young girls as bait, business._

 _If you'll excuse me, Elena's ears were burning, and she's calling me to the high school parking lot. Gang's all gathering at Stefan's behest._

 _I'm sorry it took me so long._

 _I miss you so much. Ro x_

* * *

 **22:30 - Mystic Falls High School**

Damon got out of his car at the same time that I did. He walked over towards me, and asked, "What are we doing here?"

"I don't know." I said, with a tired shrug, "Ask Stefan."

Caroline, Stefan, Elena, Bonnie, Matt, and Jeremy were all sitting at the picnic tables outside of the school.

"Stefan, what are we doing?" Damon asked.

Stefan had picked out some of the paper lanterns from today's ill-fated memorial, and explained as he handed them out to everybody, "We're finishing the memorial we didn't get to have earlier." He handed one over to Elena, who looked mighty dishevelled from today's escapades, and she took the lantern carefully into her shaking hands. Stefan explained, "We need to start healing, Damon. We've all lost so much, especially recently. I think we're numb to it. We push it away, we make a joke out of it, ignore how we feel. We've never just let ourselves grieve."

I mouthed thank you, as I accepted my lantern from Stefan. He nodded back in solidarity and caressed my arm before turning to his brother.

"So, you're lighting lanterns?" Damon scorned.

"Yeah." Stefan said, with a heavy heart, "Yeah, we need to do this."

"What we need to do is find out who this hunter is and what he knows about the death of the Council." Damon implored, "We have more important things to be doing right now than this."

"Not tonight, we don't." I said, quietly.

Stefan was preaching to the choir. It were as if he had taken a peek inside my own heavy heart and diagnosed exactly what I was feeling: emotionally exhausted; desperately seeking one single moment, however small it may seem, to just be, to just stew in it, to not have to be constantly on it, alert, and fighting, and kicking and screaming our way through all of the chaos; to just acknowledge that this all sucked! Damon scoffed in derision as Stefan led the proceedings.

"This is for my uncle Zach. For my friend Lexi. And for Alaric." Stefan declared. He lit his lantern and then instigated the chain, passing the lighter on to Matt.

"This is for Vicki." Matt said.

"This is for my dad." Caroline said, and quickly added, "And Tyler's."

Jeremy got up from the bench and accepted the lighter from Caroline. He looked at me, and then at Elena. He declared, "This is for our parents." His gaze drifted over to Matt, "For Vicki." His shoulders slumped slightly as he added, "Anna. Jenna. And Alaric."

I put a supportive hand on to Elena's shoulder and she grasped onto it tightly as we watched Jeremy light his lantern. Damon was closest. Jeremy tried to hand him the lighter but Damon refused.

"No way." Damon huffed out, and stormed away from the group, "I'm not doing that."

Jeremy handed the lighter over to Bonnie. She stood up in line next to Caroline and she declared, "This is for my Grams."

Stefan looked at Elena. She relinquished her grip on my hand, got up and stood next to Stefan. She lit the lantern, and she quietly said, "This um, is for my mom, my dad, Jenna, everyone that you've all lost, everyone that this town has lost."

I fed the lantern through my fingers for a moment before facing their reverent gaze. I cleared my throat as I took the lighter from Elena and I said, "This is for...this is for you, Elena. Actually, now that I think about it, most of us, here, in a way. Pretty sure we've all died once or twice...or thrice." I scoffed at the fact I was leading the death toll. I turned back to my sister, who was now teary-eyed, and I told her, "This is for you, and me."

Elena nodded and she waited for me to light my lantern, before stepping forward and then releasing them together. One at a time, and in their own time, everyone released their lanterns into the night sky. Elena stood with me, interlocked with each other; my head on her shoulder; her head on mine. Jeremy approached us and took my hand in his. The three of us stood there and watched the lanterns float away and disappear into tiny specks, and I settled into the lovely idea that both our parents and Aunt Jenna were proudly watching over us.

* * *

 **11:00 - Trailer - Woods off Route 13 - Hudson Road Entrance**

I looked at the text once again. Janky trailer. Off Route 13. Tick. Tick. However, Damon was absolutely nowhere in sight, and although I considered the fact that he was still pissy from the other night, luring me out to some creepy abandoned campsite, just to waste my time, was not his particular brand of revenge.

"Damon?" I called out, cautiously.

"In here." He sang back, from inside the trailer.

I opened the door slowly and saw him standing inside, with his back to me.

"Why were you being so cryptic?" I asked him.

"Come in." Damon requested, "Close the door."

I obliged and told him, "Whatever this is, I'm gonna need you to compel my English teacher, get me a good grade on the presentation I'm miss…" I froze instantly and pointed very, very timidly towards the box that Damon was attached by arrows pierced inside his chest. I whispered, "Tell me that is not a bomb."

"Okay." Damon said, nonchalantly, "It's a kitten. It's an adorable, exploding kitten."

"Why didn't you call your brother?" I scorned at him.

"Because I'm proud, and stubborn, and...oh, look! The girl that comes back to life even stronger every time she burns to death is already here!" Damon sang through rapidly. I glared back at him, silently. Damon sighed heavily and said, "Come on, you're not gonna get hurt. All I need you to do is use your delicate dainty ballerina hands and cut out the arrow. I'd do it myself, but if I move…" Damon gently touched the string and made a soft *kaboooooom* with his mouth to demonstrate his point. He revelled my jerk forward to slap his hand away from the string.

"Stay still." I muttered and took up the knife lying on a nearby table, "And for the record, I don't know how many lives I have nor do I know what the deal is with getting completely obliterated by mines, and I don't particularly want to find out. So, stand. STILL."

I moved around to the back of Damon and put the point of the knife next to the entry point of the arrow going through Damon's back.

"Do you actually do ballet, Barbie?" Damon asked.

"When I was a kid." I said, quietly, focussing on cutting around the arrow, but keeping it relatively still.

"There's enough slack here, don't worry." Damon said back, in somewhat of a caring way. While I continued to cut away, Damon picked up the letter from Pastor Young to April that was left on the table, and he asked, "How well did you know Pastor Young?"

"Elena used to babysit for him. I didn't really know him." I said, "He always seemed like a nice guy."

"Nice, crazy guy." Damon scoffed, "He wrote a letter about sacrifice and war brewing in Mystic Falls."

Damon held up the letter so that I could skim through it while I worked on the arrows. I gestured to a certain line in the letter and asked, with a scoff, "What does he mean, "a greater evil is coming"?" Don't we have great enough evil already?"

Damon huffed out, "Pfft. You'd think."

His phone began to ring. I wasn't too engrossed with stabbing around his back to notice that he ignored the call from Elena.

"How did you get stuck on hunter duty?" I asked him, "We had our one night off, I thought everyone was jumping back into it."

Damon sneered, "Stefan had a Physics test."

"Hmm. Well, aren't you are a good brother." I scoffed.

"I'm the bad brother." Damon smirked.

"You're strung up to a bomb while Stefan plays vampire with the girl who broke your heart. But, you're doing a very good job of acting like it doesn't suck." I declared, and finally finished prying off the arrow head.

He scoffed, "When did you get so jaded? Aren't you one of the MVP's on Team Stefan?"

I ignored everything he said, stood back and told him, "Okay, I think that should be good."

Damon yanked the arrow through his chest in one swift motion and dropped it on the table; I flapped my arms about in disbelief.

"Weren't gonna wait at least til I cleared the area?" I scoffed back.

"Thank you for your time, Little Gilbert." Damon said.

"A B+ will be thanks enough." I said and slipped out of the door Damon held open so politely for me.

* * *

 **18:00 - Salvatore House - Exterior**

I slammed the trunk door of the car down, absentmindedly, and suddenly sprung a heart attack at realising someone was leant there against the back. I slapped a hand over my heart and then completely exploded from the surprise.

"Oh my god, Hayley!" I gasped and embraced her tightly.

"So, where are _we_ headed with all that beer?" She asked, and gestured to the crate I'd just stuffed in the car.

"Oh. Anti-curfew party. Who cares!" I laughed and asked her, "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Well, I was making good progress on this guy, Adam, and all of a sudden, he gets this call from his master: he needs to come to Mystic Falls and protect his precious Tyler. What are the chances?" Hayley said, in her favoured sarcastic tone, "Surely not? Klaus killed Tyler, right? There's no way that ass is still alive and spontaneously forgot how to work a cell phone?!"

"Well…uh, it's a long story." I said, awkwardly.

"I have all the time in the world. You know, I asked around, looking for the Gilbert House. And…turns out, it's a construction site…it's getting rebuilt…after it burned to the ground…feel free to chime in any time." Hayley laughed.

"I haven't had some self-control relapse…since then…ish." I explained, poorly.

"It's funny. Tyler had the exact same expression on his face when I called him out on his crap too." Hayley noted.

"I was attacked." I said, "And…wasn't feeling super zen in the moment. It was an accident."

"Well, we never _mean_ to burn down our childhood homes. Sometimes, these things just happen." She mocked. I simply scoffed in response. She cut the act and admitted, "Look, I get it, okay? It's the very nature of what we are all trying to do here. It's secretive. The less that know, the better. It's just…I thought y'all knew me better."

"We do. Look, I'm sorry." I said, "It's been a wild few months."

"Forgiven." Hayley said, "I actually met Klaus. Just now. And left Tyler's modest home immediately after."

"Klaus has that effect on people." I snorted.

"He thinks that Tyler's excursion was some kind of elopement to be with me?" Hayley said, "It needs to stay that way."

"Right. Secrets and lies. Our MO. I haven't forgotten." I said.

"Great. So, are you gonna show me how the hip happening town of Mystic Falls gets down?" Hayley laughed.

"It's Rebekah Mikaelson's party." I informed her, "Klaus' sister."

Hayley wrinkled her nose and suggested we tank these beers literally anywhere else, just the two of us. I wholeheartedly agreed.

* * *

 **Mystic Grill - 11:00**

A supportive hand appeared on my shoulder, but I didn't have any energy to raise my head from the table and investigate whose it was.

"Are you okay?" Matt asked me, "That's the second guy who's asked me if the blonde girl's still breathing."

I squinted up at Matt and shook my head. I rasped out, "Late night."

He sat down opposite me and sighed out, "Jeez, Ro. What the hell did you get up to?"

I propped my head into my hand and muttered, "Friend. Out of Town. Girl can drink beer like it's water."

Matt laughed at my misery, and asked, "Why are you here? Go back to bed."

"Haven't slept." I muttered, "Waiting on Jer. He has car."

"He's an hour late. So, good luck with that." Matt scoffed, "And now's probably the time for a little drink driving PSA."

I rolled my eyes and rummaged around in my bag, as I explained, "Ah, but you are forgetting about the worst and the best superpower of all time." I blew into the little breathalyser twice and showed him the dramatic drop in figures.

"Super expensive night out but no hangover?" Matt asked.

"Ding. Ding. Ding!" I sang.

"What about your friend?" Matt asked.

"She's been in your bathroom a while. So, good luck with that. Give me two mins, I'll be right as rain." I said, and lowered my head back down to the table, to the formerly wibbly wobbly, now cool, solid, table.

Matt scoffed in what I shall believe was jealousy, and disappeared away from the booth. I could hear a muffled conversation a few steps away from me.

"What's that?" Matt had asked.

"The key to your new truck." Rebekah explained, "It's parked outside, paid for, insured, everything but a big red bow."

"If that's your idea of an apology, you should probably give it to Elena." Matt scorned, "She's the one that you killed."

My head shot up and I hollered at her, "Hey. I'll pass it on."

Rebekah threw the keys at my table and stormed away from the rejection, over to the bar where her elder brother was perched, watching over the whole scene. He noticed Hayley emerging from the bathroom and re-joining her friend...me. Crap. Hayley finally returned to the booth, looking only slightly less dishevelled than before, and collapsed down. She exhaled heartily and whined, "Where's your brother?"

My eyes were now fixated on the exchange between Klaus and Rebekah at the bar. I could feel the alcohol dispelling from my system ever more rapidly, like a fight or flight response was working on overdrive or something, and the room straightened itself out completely. It looked like Klaus was trying to recruit Rebekah back on to Team Psycho, but she wasn't having any of it. Interesting.

"What's he doing here?" Hayley asked me, as we watched the siblings part ways less than cordially.

"It's never just a social call with him." I muttered, "It's _something_. Have we put a spanner in the whole 'Hayley and Tyler alone in the mountains' tale?"

"Um, you're not reconnecting with the person who spent a solid month teaching you self-control, and then totally ghosted. You are showing Tyler's new friend around town, because you're a nice person." Hayley offered, "And you are totally shipping _Hayler_ , and never really liked Caroline all that much, considering she swooped in and stole your man."

"He was never _really_ my man. And she's not that bad." I shot back, "She's actually had her moments of being a really good friend."

"It's either that, or mountain-top threesome." Hayley replied.

"Caroline is...a lot sometimes." I said.

"You sobered up yet?" Hayley asked.

I blew into my new party-trick piece and showed her the 'Nil' display. I picked up the keys to Matt's new truck, and said, "Let's get out of here."


	45. I'm Gonna Need That Story, Stefan

**Lockwood Mansion**

Tyler showed me the text, which had been sent to him, Damon and Stefan, from Jeremy's phone: _Hunter at Mystic Grill with hostages. They all die at sundown_. My brother, and who knows who else, were being held hostage by the vampire hunter. Whilst we waited for everyone to gather at Tyler's, the same ideas and sentiments were spit-balled around the room: all circling back to ending Connor.

"Why is he doing this?" Elena asked the room, "What does he have against Jeremy?"

"It's a trap, Elena." I replied, and implored, "Come on, he texts Stefan, Damon, Tyler. Vampire. Vampire. Hybrid. He wants a new high score."

"Who cares why! All that matters, Little Council of Horrors, is deciding _how_ we are gonna kill this asshole! I say we each take a different entrance; hit him at the same time." Damon declared.

"He said hostages, Damon. Plural." Tyler reminded him.

"And?" Damon scorned.

"And?" I scoffed, "What do you mean, _and_?"

"He just means-" Elena sighed, heavily.

Stefan walked in the room, cutting off my incredulous glare at Damon. Elena sprung up from the couch and ran over to him.

"Stefan!" She said. He reached his arms out towards Elena, and embraced her tightly.

"Where the hell have you been?" Damon asked.

"Coming up with a plan." Stefan said, plainly.

"Yeah, we have a plan." Damon declared, "The plan is I'm gonna rip Connor's heart out and I'm going to feed it to him."

"That's not a plan." Stefan said, tersely, and reiterated the 'Council's' concerns, "We need to be careful. Connor has Jeremy and who knows how many other hostages."

"Hence, the open-heart surgery." Damon replied.

"Damon's right." Elena said, "Connor's strong, but he's not going to be able to take all of us."

"I called in the hybrids to help too." Tyler added.

Caroline stormed in to the room, and said, "My mom put squad cars blocking the streets. They're saying it's a faulty gas main. We're good to go."

"Good, great." Damon said, "No cops, no witnesses, no reason to wait around."

"All right, hold on, you're not all going." Stefan declared, gesturing around at the ever-increasing crowd of opinions in the living room.

"He shot me like nine times." Tyler scoffed, "If we're killing him, I want in."

"He's got Jeremy." I declared, "I'm going."

"Me too." Elena said.

"Listen, nobody is going anywhere until I figure out what we're walking into." Stefan declared.

"Until _you_ figure it out? Is that where you've been all morning? Out buying bossy pants?" Damon scorned.

"This guy is known for setting traps, right?" Stefan said, "We'd be pretty dumb to walk into one, especially if he has werewolf venom."

"Does he?" Elena asked, suddenly converting her anger and fear into rational thought, and visibly upsetting Damon in the process.

"He's had it before." Stefan said.

"In that case, everyone who's not a vampire should handle this." Tyler said, and asked, "You up for that, Ro?"

"Of course." I said, rising up from the couch.

"Sit your ass back down." Damon scorned at me, "Burning the Grill to the ground is Plan Z, Barbarino."

"And you all getting totally wasted by venom doesn't scream Plan A to me." I scoffed back.

"The Grown-Ups are talking." Damon sneered.

I didn't back down. I presented a compelling three point argument, waving my three fingers in time, in front of his face as I said, "No imminent danger to mortality. Burns like a bitch. It's my freaking twin brother in there. I am not side-lining this."

Damon batted my hand away, and I batted him right back. He scorned down at me. I stepped into him with a scowl that Stefan remembered quite vividly. He stood firmly between the infantile display of disagreement before it escalated again, and gently ushered me further back away from Damon as he declared to the entire room, "We are not going in to this blind. No one is. Give me one hour to suss it out. We go from there."

Stefan waited for me to nod in agreement before removing himself as barricade.

"Fine." Damon scorned, "Fine, one hour of recon, that's it. And we're gonna need some extra help. So, where the hell's the Wicked Witch of the West?"

"She can't do magic." Caroline reminded him.

Ever since the ordeal with her grams the spirits had been punishing Bonnie, forcing her to relieve the horror every time she tried to do a spell.

"Really?" Damon exclaimed, sarcastically, "Well, call her, tell her Jeremy's life is in danger; maybe that will bring her out of retirement."

Damon sauntered out of the room, smacking Stefan sharply with his shoulder on the way out.

* * *

 **Mystic Falls Town Square**

Stefan is a reasonable guy; he's not about to go in to anything gun's blazing. He wasn't overtly acting out of character, but something...was off. I couldn't put an exact finger on it, so I decided to recon his recon mission (the other option was to follow Damon and Elena up to Alaric's apartment, to check out some tunnel maps, and I wanted to save my anger for the hostage-taker, rather than Damon's face). I followed Stefan, through another parking lot, another alleyway, and finally out across the eerily silent and empty Town Square, all the while he was speaking heatedly into his phone. I'd caught a glimmer of his reflection going past a shop window, his usual brooding face was sunken further into a scowl.

He stopped, suddenly, and scorned, "Well, you should care. Damon does. So does Caroline, Tyler, Elena, Rosanna. If any of them get to Connor, then you just wasted a trip to Italy. I can buy us some time, but Damon's getting antsy. So, if you want Connor alive, you better get your hybrids on board with my plan."

Stefan hung up the phone, and shoved it into his pocket. He turned a little and staggered when he finally noticed me behind him, leaning against the hood of a car, waiting politely for him to finish his telling conversation.

"What plan is that?" I asked him, simply.

Stefan grimaced, racked his brain, and came up with nothing. He had slipped up in the urgency, and sheer importance of it all, and hadn't even heard me coming. He chose the marginally better option and released a somewhat murky truth.

"Klaus will send his hybrids in the front, they are immune to the werewolf venom. And I will take the back." Stefan said, quickly.

Klaus? In Italy? He wants Connor? I stared back at him, pickled with confusion, and asked the most obvious question, "Why would Klaus help...anyone?"

"We need Connor alive." Stefan replied.

" _We_? Stefan-" I sighed out, that wasn't an answer.

"Do you trust me?" Stefan asked, emphatically, "Do you trust that I love Elena, and that I would do absolutely anything for her? For her family?"

I took in his tense and tangled expression, and felt his intentions were honest and true. Stefan was my friend. He was a good man at his core. He did love Elena, of course he did. But Klaus Mikaelson was no friend, and the stench of his input deeply unsettled me, nevertheless, in that moment, I chose to trust my friend.

"We're a little short on time, so you can save what I'm sure is one hell of a story, until we get Jeremy back." I said, "But I'm gonna need that story, Stefan."

"I know. Meet me at the Old Lockwood Cellar and do not go in without me." He said, and headed off towards Alaric's apartment, presumably to fill Damon and Elena in on the plan.

* * *

 **Old Lockwood Cellar - Tunnels**

"Who are the Brotherhood of the Five?" I asked, and received complete silence in response, the sort of unwavering silence which might lead you to think that your partner in crime didn't actually hear a word you said. But, you know, he did. I'm literally echoing every time I speak. I tried again, "Okay, what is the Hunter's Mark? Stefan? I was right beside you when you made your failed negotiation phone call. Stefan?"

"It's not the time. Later." Stefan replied.

I followed him further down the dank, creepy tunnel for a little while. His flashlight started to flicker out intermittently.

"Okay, if we're gonna walk through this creepy ass dungeon in radio silence, and quietly psyche ourselves up for a fight, that's fine, but we should really hammer out a general plan before we get there." I said, speaking to the walls once more, and suggested, "I'll go for Connor. You get Jeremy, etc, out of there."

"No." Stefan said, flatly, and smacked his flashlight in frustration, "You get the hostages. I get Connor."

"Okay, unless he has suddenly acquired Phoenix specific bullets, we should really go with my plan!" I shot back.

"Shit." Stefan scorned as the flashlight finally gave out.

I huffed out a little breath and summoned a small bundle of flames into the palm of my hand. Stefan stared back at me, his expression suggested gratitude was in there somewhere, but it was overwhelmed by the weight on his shoulders.

"Give me something." I said, in that dark, claustrophobic tunnel.

He avoided it for another beat, the light from the burning embers dancing across his troubled face.

"I got a call this morning from the contractor." Stefan said, "Your house is ready to move back into. It's finished."

And with that, he sauntered away into the darkness, leaving me standing there, blind-sided. I scoffed and stormed after him, whining, "Oh. Don't distract me with great news! Answer my question! Literally, any of my questions, take your pick. Stefan. Stefan?"

He stopped suddenly and hushed me; I almost slammed straight into him. I snapped my palm shut, a little scared I'd set him alight. He paused, and listened. He could hear what sounded like a hammer scraping against bricks and headed towards the noise.

"This way." He whispered.

* * *

 **Mystic Grill**

"Oh my God." Matt groaned, and staggered back from the porthole window into the restaurant.

A bomb had gone off, sending the hybrid soaring backwards due to the force of the explosion, and shards of glass and wood searing into him. April staggered backwards, petrified, and slammed into Stefan. She turned around sharply and gasped. Stefan covered her mouth and gestured to keep quiet. I hung back a little and watched through the window, as Stefan instructed Matt to get April out of there. The hybrid was somehow still alive. He clawed his way up off the ground, covered in nails and blood and shards of glass. Connor walked up to the hybrid, with a massive gun, dismissed the hybrid's raised hands, and blasted a hole clean through his chest. He smacked on to the ground. Super dead.

Stefan whispered to Matt, and handed over his phone, "Follow this map, get out of here, take her to Caroline so she can-"

"Okay." Matt nodded and said, "Stefan, that guy is armed. If you go out there, he's gonna kill Jeremy."

"No one's killing anyone. Go." Stefan hissed and hurried them through the panel in the wall. He turned back to me and whispered, "My way. Hang back a sec."

Stefan slowly and quietly crept out from the back room. He made it all of four steps before Connor caught him, in the corner of his eye, and grabbed his closest hostage in response. He pointed his gun towards Stefan and opened fire. Stefan flashed across the Grill, avoiding the hailstorm of bullets, and skidded down behind the bar for cover. I grimaced. Every muscle in my body tensed. Great plan, Stefan, top notch.

"Connor, you don't have to do this!" Stefan called out.

"Stefan!" Jeremy roared out, in fear. He was frozen.

Connor had shoved Jeremy onto another mat, just like the one that had sent our hybrid friend into the afterlife. The tell tale beeping pierced the settling dust of the restaurant once more, and it became very clear how precarious Jeremy's position had become. Stefan glared at me through the window and shook his head. Connor walked around the room, keeping his gun pointed firmly at the bar Stefan was hiding behind.

"Connor, we can end this right now!" Stefan called out, "Just put down the gun and come with me!"

"Sure." Connor chuckled, "Come out, I'll hand the gun over."

"Think about this." Stefan said, "No one has to die. I'll tell you everything you need to know!"

"I don't make deals with vampires!" Connor barked back.

"Listen to me, if you die right now, then your whole life, all that killing; it'll all be for nothing." Stefan implored, "I can give you the truth. Just put down the gun and let Jeremy go!"

This was useless; utterly, and completely! I couldn't stand back any longer; my hands were hot and hurt from clenching my fists into tiny balls. I was breathing. I was focussing on the smell of dank dish water. I was using that one key feature of the room to hone my anger, and my fear but I was struggling. I couldn't waste any more time. We'd tried Stefan's way, and Jeremy was stuck on a bomb. I pushed the back door open, much to Stefan's dismay, and appealed to the hostage-taker.

"Please!" I begged him. Connor's attention snapped on to the teenage girl stepping out from the back, with hands raised, and a face trembling with fear; his line of fire instantly followed suit. I begged him, wholeheartedly, "Please. Don't hurt him."

Connor switched his aim back to Jeremy, and he informed me, "You come any closer, he's dead."

"Ro, get out of here!" Jeremy scorned.

"Please!" I cried, and stood small before him, "I need my brother! He's all I have left. Just–just let him go."

"You hear that?" Connor called out to Stefan, "Your girl is watching. I will shoot the boy right in front of her! On the count of three! One! Two!"

Stefan stood up from behind the bar and raised his hands in surrender. Connor turned back to his prime target and pointed the gun at Stefan. I seized my moment and rushed towards Connor. He spun back and fired his gun once. I stopped; I clutched onto myself; my gaze was stuck on his. He looked almost surprised at what he'd done. My stomach felt furiously hot and then wet. I'd groaned out in agony, and then huffed out pained startled breaths, and then hurtled a ball of flames into him. Stefan called out my name. I didn't stop. I slammed Connor to the ground and fell with him. I grabbed him by the throat and pounded into him. I was blinded by a rage I hadn't felt in a long time.

Stefan grabbed Jeremy, having stumbled at the sight of his sister getting shot, he'd triggered the bomb. Stefan threw them both over a table, yanking it up as a shield from the ensuing explosion. Only as the ripple of the explosion battered against my senses did I come back.

"Jeremy?!" I called out, suddenly all consumed by panic.

Connor kicked me in the gut, and shoved me off of him. He grabbed me by the hair and pulled me up onto my knees.

"What the fuck are you?!" He growled in my ear, raising a stake up.

Stefan slammed into Connor and I dropped down to the ground again like a sack of potatoes. I caressed my head and shuffled further away from where they were. My eyes shot all around the Grill, but there was nothing there. I couldn't see Connor or Stefan anywhere. They had vanished.

* * *

Elena had fed me her blood to spur on the healing enough to get up off floor and head home; the floor of the Mystic Grill wasn't all too welcoming to begin with, but now it was littered with shattered glass and busted furniture, splattered with pools of my blood, and what remained of that hybrid fella; a lot of Connor's blood was over there too...along with scorch marks, and right about then I decided the blanks in my rage-induced black-out were sufficiently filled. Elena gently touched my face, looking at the one good hit Connor had gotten in, and then surveyed my stomach, noting that the bullet had gone right through. Suddenly, her eyes glazed over, red with hunger. Her eyes shot back to normal almost immediately but she backed away from us both, in horror.

"I'm sorry-I..." Elena whispered.

"Hey, it's okay." Jeremy assured her, reaching out to pull her hands away from her face, "You don't have to hide it. We know you're not going to hurt us." He tilted his head towards me and scoffed, "Literally can't hurt her."

"It. Hurt." I groaned, and leant my head back against the battered booth.

"How did this happen, Jer?" Elena asked, "Why did Connor come after you?"

"He said I was like him, because I could see his tattoo." Jeremy explained.

"His what?" Elena asked.

"His hunter's mark." Jeremy said, and the words prickled in my mind, "It's invisible to everyone but me. Stefan and Damon didn't tell you about it?"

Elena shook her head, and said, "No. Wait – wait, who else knows about this? Did you?"

I shook my head. No.

"Well, that's the thing, I don't even know." Jeremy said, "Apparently, I was with Connor all day yesterday, but I can't remember. Someone compelled me."

Elena stood up, furious at the revelation, and scorned, "I think I know who."


	46. Look Where You're Going

**The New Old Gilbert House - First Night**

Our first night back inside our reconstructed childhood home was completely uneventful, just like old times, and not weird or unsettling at all? No. It was everything I thought it would be. At more than one point in the dead of night, I contemplated going back to Elijah's apartment. I never returned the key after I left there; well, actually, I never had an opportunity to do so since he dropped off the map. I knew I would just have to get used to this again, the idea of having a home, or rather, having a creepy shell of a home. Running away was not going to do me any favours in the long run.

So, it was decided; I lay on my back, on a brand new mattress on the floor, wide-awake, and stared at the ceiling, willing myself to sleep. The plan was there; it was just the execution that was sloppy. I couldn't sleep. I'd never been a particularly heavy sleeper, but that night I was listening to absolutely everything. A car driving by. Jeremy turning over. Elena's door opening. She padded down the stairs. The microwave beeped. I groaned at her poor etiquette and rolled over; always hover and catch the microwave with a second to spare, before it dings. It was just common courtesy, man.

"Jeremy?!" Elena suddenly screamed out.

I shot up in my bed, and heard my brother do the same. He bolted from his room, and thundered down the stairs as Elena called out his name again. I rummaged about for my sweatpants and pulled myself into them, before following suit. It didn't sound like there was anyone else down there, no intruders, no fighting, no nothing. It sounded like a knife had dropped and clattered on to the floor.

"Oh my god!" Elena wailed out.

She had our brother in her hands, her bloodied hands. My eyes darted around the kitchen, desperately struggling to connect the dots. It was just her. It was just him. She fell to the ground with his limp body. She was howling and wailing, in floods of tears.

"Elena?!" I screamed out and fell to her side, "What the hell did you do?!"

"Jer! Jer! Jer! Jer! No, no, no, no, no, no." She cried out and shook him.

I took him into my lap and looked down at Jeremy's hand and saw that he was wearing his ring, but that doesn't make either of us feel any better. I took him away from her.

"No, no. Jer! Jeremy!" Elena cried out and she swayed back and forth, manically.

Her gaze was manic. Her whole body was shaking. She was clearly in shock, petrified at her own actions.

"Elena." I rasped, and reached out a firm hand to stop her hysterical swaying, "What happened?"

"He was Connor. I thought he was Connor. He attacked me." Elena babbled, through snotty tears. She caressed his face, and apologised over and over again. She cried, "I didn't mean to do this, I'm so sorry, Jeremy, oh my god, I'm so sorry!"

"Call Stefan." I asked her and shuffled Jeremy away a little from her touch, "Please! Elena. Now!"

* * *

Later on, in the very early morning sun, we'd moved Jeremy over to the couch, where he now lay dead, and we waited for Stefan to burst in to the house with some semblance of an answer. I sat on the armchair directly beside Jeremy, watching fiercely over him, whilst Elena paced back and forth before us. My eyes flickered from my brother, and then hesitantly back to my sister. I was trying my utmost to sympathize, I was, but all I could do was sit there and try to swallow the hatred and anger I felt so deeply in the pit of my stomach. I realised that I'd placed myself between them; should she flip out again, she would have to go through me. My heart dropped at the wrong Salvatore brother coming to the rescue. Damon, not Stefan, was Elena's solution.

"I can't believe this happened." Elena cried, and whined to him, "What am I going to say to him?"

"Thanks for not ditching the family ring after it drove Ric crazy?" Damon suggested, and after receiving a sharp glare from both Elena and I, in unison, he added, "You should have called Stefan."

"I asked her to." I muttered, and took a long sip of my tea.

"I don't want to talk to him." Elena shot back, "He's been lying to me and hiding things from me. He compelled Jeremy to forget God knows what."

"You don't know that." I reminded her.

She shot a glare back at me, but couldn't drum up a response; she was emotional, exhausted, and now paranoid to boot.

"In all fairness, I mean, I think you _killing him_ kinda trumps all that." Damon scoffed, and added, "And you should have called Stefan."

"I don't trust him right now, Damon." Elena groaned.

Suddenly, as though summoned by the gods of comedic timing, Stefan sauntered into the house and greeted everyone cordially with a hurried ' _hey_ '.

"P.S. I called Stefan." Damon whispered loudly to Elena.

Stefan walked over to his girlfriend, after surveying the aftermath, and asked her, "What happened? Why didn't you call me?"

"I just-I need to go upstairs and shower." Elena rasped to the floor, "Clean all the blood off my hands."

We all watched as Elena walked out of the room, a little over-dramatically, and the brothers turned to me for a little more context.

"She said _Connor_ attacked her, so she fought back." I informed them both, "But really, it was Jeremy."

"So...she's gone bananas?" Damon enquired.

"She called out Jeremy's name, he came downstairs, and got stabbed in the neck." I said, "That's all I know."

Suddenly, Jeremy came back to the land of the living with a dramatic gasp. He groaned and cricked his bones, and caressed his sore neck, confused at the blood stains saturating his shirt.

"Welcome back." Stefan said, nonchalantly, "How are you feeling?"

"What happened?" Jeremy asked us.

"Long story." Damon sighed, and said rather than asked, "Barbie? You got this?"

He and Stefan sauntered out of the living room, leaving me the joyous task of informing Jeremy that our sister had murdered him last night.

* * *

 **Elm Street - Walking to school**

Stefan and Damon had stayed behind to clean up the murder mess and to take care of Elena. Now that Jeremy was alive and kicking, and didn't seem too worse for wear, the anger had started to seep out of my heart, but was filling back up rapidly with confusion. Jeremy and I headed off to school in an attempt to claw back some normalcy.

"It seems almost fitting to christen the new old house like that." I said.

"You serious? With Elena stabbing me in the neck?" Jeremy said.

"It's just a reminder. It's a new house. But it's the same house." I mused, "It's not a new start."

"Don't be mad at her." Jeremy said, "And don't be such a bummer."

"I'm not being a bummer. It's true. Your sister murdered you last night, Jer." I scorned, "How are you just chumming along like that's nothing?"

"It wasn't her fault. She didn't know what she was doing. And I'm not afraid of her." Jeremy said. He stopped, and asked, "Are you?"

"Not _of_ her. _For_ her." I said, honestly, "For what her life's going to look like now. Jeremy...if you were not wearing that ring, I would have lost you both, and you know that."

"I know. I know! But that's not what happened." He said, diplomatically, "Remember back when I was freaking out? Back at the start of this? And you were all, hey, we have the Vampire A-Team. Stop wigging out. We'll make it work? Yeah? Let's get you back to that. We'll figure it out."

I scoffed and uttered 'whatever', and started off walking again.

"I'd wig out if anything happened to you, too. Big time." Jeremy said, and was met with empathetic eyes. He'd worked his way around to what was really bothering me. He sighed and said, "And it can happen, any minute, you never know, but that happens to normal people too. You can get hit by a bus, have a heart attack, get murdered by your vampire sister. You don't get to know that stuff, right?"

"You get to try to avoid that stuff!" I shot back, "You look where you're going, you watch your cholesterol, you-"

"You, what?" Jeremy asked, "What's the end of that, huh? Stab her in the chest with a stake?"

"God, no!" I scorned back, and slapped him in the arm.

Jeremy laughed and flung his arm around my neck, and ruffled my hair. He said, sincerely, "I love you too, kid."

"You're three minutes older than me!" I scorned and broke free, and mimicked his little ' _best three minutes of my life_!' in unison with his rehearsed response.

As we approached the school, Jeremy looked down at the back of his hand, and he asked me, "Hey, do you see anything on my hand?"

I looked at his perfectly normal hand and shook my head.

"What if I told you I saw the beginning of a mark like Connor's?" He said.

"Are you serious?" I asked.

"It showed up after he died. He told me that I was a potential, and that's why I could see his mark." Jeremy said.

"So, what does that make you?" I asked him, "Like, the next chosen one or something?"

Later on, Damon interrupted our normal school day to inform us that yes, the case was indeed something like that: to cure Elena of the Hunter's Curse, to prevent our sister from going off the deep end completely and murdering herself in the desperate search for peace, Jeremy would need to become the next Hunter. NOW.

* * *

 **Lockwood Mansion**

We could hear Klaus seethe ' _get out of here_ ' as we stepped ever closer towards the front door of Tyler's mansion. Stefan nodded at Jeremy and I; it was time to execute the plan. Chris took heed of Klaus' uncharacteristic mercy and started quickly for the exit; in hindsight, Hayley would recount this as the moment she knew something was terribly wrong. Stefan flashed through the open door and plunged a stake deep into Chris' heart, incapacitating the hybrid.

He fell to the ground in horror as Hayley screamed out a strangled, "NO!"

She covered her hand over her mouth and cried into it, as Jeremy and I followed Stefan's path; Jeremy toting a massive cleaver in his hands.

"Jeremy?!" Tyler exclaimed at the scene before him, "What the hell, man?!"

Tyler took one step and I fulfilled my portion of the plan; I drew a line of flames between them and us.

"I'm sorry." Stefan said, and nodded towards Jeremy.

I said nothing. I did nothing else. Jeremy swung the cleaver down onto Chris' neck, severing his head clean off. I winced at the sounds. Hayley let out a guttural scream and recoiled in horror, burying her face in her hands. Chris' blood splattered across Jeremy's face; he didn't flinch once. He glanced down at his hand, and gave a telling nod to both Stefan and I; the tattoo must have grown further up his arm. I closed my palm to dismiss the flames. It was done.

"We had to kill a vampire, to spark the next Hunter." Stefan explained, as the flames died down around us, "That ends Elena's torment."

"Tyler, we didn't have a choice." I uttered into the silent room.

"I told him we had his back." Tyler muttered, still in complete shock at the sight of his decapitated friend at his feet, "I told him if he helped us he'd be free."

"But we needed to help Elena-" I said, quietly, feebly.

"By killing another friend?!" Tyler barked back at me. Stefan motioned to step in, but I gestured to hang back; it was okay. Tyler scorned at me as though my hands had wielded the blade, "He's like me! He's part of my pack. All he wanted to do was be un-sired by that disgusting piece of…"

"Ty. Don't waste your breath. And YOU. Leave!" Hayley seethed harshly as she crouched down beside her fallen friend, tears streaming down her face, "All of you. NOW."

* * *

 **New Old Gilbert House**

"Stefan's here. He's out on the porch." I told my sister, quietly confused, "Doesn't want to come in."

She squeezed my hand gently, and then steadied her breath and walked outside, closing the front door carefully behind her. I hung back, settling into the kitchen, and waited for the sound of the front door opening again. It was the longest five minutes of my life, but that's all it was. Eventually, Elena reappeared and rested against the closed door; a chapter of her life had just closed itself, and although it hurt, it was long overdue.

Elena looked up at me as I tentatively stepped towards her. She composed herself long enough to tell me, "My feelings for Damon have been magnified since I became a vampire. And...I'm not the girl that Stefan fell in love with. So...we're not going to hurt each other anymore."

I didn't waste another second. I pulled Elena into a tight embrace, and told her how sorry I was.


	47. I Had A Reason

**New Old Gilbert House - Friday Night**

Natalie had come over to our officially dubbed 'New Old House' to help decorate my new old room. My old old room hadn't really been updated since middle school; the walls were an unimaginative light pink, adorned with various ribbons and medals; white gloss shelves harboured a rotation of gymnastics and dance and cheer trophies, bordered by an even symmetrical layout of photo frames; my family, my teams, my friends, newspaper clippings. It was a shrine to my accomplishments, and a meticulous one at that.

I'd stared back at the blank white walls, and grimaced at the thought of recreating any of it. Elena and I had stayed up all night, talking, and crying, and trying to put some of what we were both feeling into words. She explained it as best she could, even using her diary excerpts at certain points to show how far removed she was from the girl that she used to be, the girl that Stefan had fallen in love with; and I understood her pain, completely: that former chapter of our lives was shut, to the point where the pages were stuck together, and couldn't be pried apart. Those girls were gone; it was time to decide who was going to take their place.

I was privately sitting with the idea that I was now the kind of person that would do absolutely anything to protect my loved ones, including but not limited to being complicit in the murder of another's. It didn't sit well, I knew that much. I also knew that Elena, even without her heightened vampire emotions, would drown in the despair and guilt if I vocalized my inner conflict.

I briefly left Natalie painting different shades of green onto the wall to take a phone call.

"Who was that?" Natalie asked as I returned.

"Freddie." I told her, "He asked if I wanted to be in the pageant's dance thing tomorrow."

"That's amazing!" Natalie exclaimed.

"Yeah, I already know the dances and everything. It makes sense." I said, "A few of the girls are actually in the pageant this year, so they need a few more for the background."

"Seriously?" Natalie said, with a smirk, "Could be that, or...maybe you are talented, and they're realising that they need you, and maybe your friend is happy that you've rediscovered your love for something that you're so good at, so he's doing you a solid?"

"You're a good hype-man." I told her.

"You're an incredible dancer." She replied, "And a terrible paint-picker. Do you want to try the blues?"

* * *

 **The Lockwood Mansion - Grounds - Miss Mystic Falls Pageant**

"Hi, everyone. I'm Caroline Forbes." Caroline addressed the crowd, "As the reigning Miss Mystic Falls, it is my honour to introduce this year's Miss Mystic Court."

Caroline waited cordially for the crowd to politely clap and cheer. Elena and I were stood watching the proceedings together, but honestly Elena just watched Damon, stood a few feet away, for the majority of the time. The string quartet fired up and the procession began.

"We begin the procession with Valerie Fell accompanied by Dylan Clark." Caroline introduced, and politely clapped along with the crowd as Valerie walked carefully down the stone steps in her long glittering gown. It was incredibly tedious. Caroline declared, "Next, we have Amber Wolverton accompanied by Hector Lindsay."

Another round of applause simmered out for Amber's efforts.

"Have you seen Jeremy?" Matt whispered to us, interrupting our tired rhythm of patting our hands together.

Elena shook her head and I suggested, "He's probably up with the escorts? No?"

Another girl was introduced and another round of applause began. This time we didn't partake. We watched the girl take the arm of her escort and they walked off together. We looked over the crowds to where the escorts were hanging about, and tried to spot Jeremy.

"Yeah, Caroline told me to wrangle the escorts." Matt explained, "He's not here."

"He _was_. I gave him a ride." I whispered to Elena, who was now looking slightly worried.

"Did he tell you about his nightmares?" Matt asked us.

Again, Elena looked over at me, and I shook my head. No, I genuinely didn't know what the heck Matt was talking about.

"What nightmares?" Elena implored.

"The ones where he kills you." Matt explained, a little abruptly.

Elena looked taken aback by that revelation, but something else had caught her immediate eye.

"I'll find him, but-" Elena said, with a heavy heart, turning our attention back up to the girl who was expecting Jeremy at the bottom of those steps, "April's about to get abandoned."

"I got this." Matt whispered, and hurried over into position.

"And finally, we have a last minute entry, April Young accompanied by...Jeremy Gilbert." Caroline announced, and subtly craned her neck about, looking for the boy in question.

April continued her descent down the steps but wavered and looked around nervously for Jeremy. I made a mental note to kick Jeremy's ass the second he coughed up whatever excuse had brought this about. Matt casually sauntered up to where the escorts were lined up and held out his arm for April. Everyone applauded. She walked down the remainder of the stairs with a genial smile and took Matt's arm happily.

"You ready?" Freddie whispered to me, with a gentle nudge, pulling my gaze away from the dramatic twist of events.

"Oh. Yeah." I nodded back to him, and whispered to Elena, "Wait for me."

The pageant contestants and their escorts bowed politely to each other, and they performed the traditional opening dance, in all it's equal elegance and tedium. The contestants occupied the spotlight for one full run through of the dance, and then we followed suit, and joined in. After what felt like a small eternity, we parted, we clapped, and we were free.

I had caught sight of Caroline making a hurried beeline towards Elena at some point during the dance, and I searched the crowd for them.

"Where are you going?" Freddie asked me, incredulously.

"Uh...I'm done? I-I need to find my brother-" I replied.

"Can't it wait?" Freddie implored, "Solo's coming up. Look alive."

He took my hand and led me back to the center of the dance floor.

"And now, ladies and gentlemen, please join me in welcoming the Mystic Falls High School Dance Team. They have prepared a little something for us today." Carol Lockwood announced.

Another cordial round of clapping ensued.

"Prepared. My. Ass." I seethed at Freddie.

"Just follow my lead." He smirked back at me as the band started up a cover of Ed Sheeran's ' _Thinking Out Loud_ '. Freddie whispered to me, as he took the lead and spun me elegantly, "You've seen the music video right?"

"I hate you." I hissed at him.

I was quietly glad that I'd chosen a flowing midi length dress today; the dance involved a lot of lifts, and twirls and turns, and a whole lot of making it up as we went along; I'd go for the lift, he'd have to be ready to catch me. I was mad at him, and nervous about falling flat on my face for all of ten seconds, and then, hell, it was fun; we got a little brave; the applause felt continuous, and animated. It took me a little while after my final return to Earth, and our own gracious bows, to remember that my brother was still AWOL.

* * *

I couldn't find anyone through the dense crowd of well-wishers that surrounded Freddie and I after our dance. Well, more accurately, I couldn't find anyone who could help me find Jeremy, or who didn't hate my guts completely and probably never wanted to talk to me ever again. I saw Professor Shane, Bonnie's new mentor, pour Hayley a glass of champagne. They laughed and chuckled, she patted his arm flirtatiously, and then she caught sight of me. She excused herself, and strutted over in my direction. Okay...maybe a little wrong about her having nothing to say to me.

I cleared my throat and asked her, "How do you two know each other?"

"How do you think you can talk to me after you murdered my friend right in front of me?" Hayley asked, tersely.

"I...had a reason." I shot back, a little feebly.

"Oh. Well. That makes it okay then. Don't worry Chris, you weren't murdered at random." Hayley sneered, "Rosanna had a reason." I stepped to move past her, but she parked herself right in my path and said, "That was a beautiful dance, by the way, even Klaus passed on his compliments. Such a mix, little ballerina by day, murderer by night."

"Excuse me." I uttered.

She stepped into my way, again and asked, "Next time little Elena needs saving and a werewolf's the answer, will you hesitate before you take me out? Or Tyler? Or does it have to be innocent _strangers_ for you to sleep at night?"

I shoved past her and headed for the house.

* * *

I scoured what felt like every room in that house, until eventually I found them. Jeremy was knelt down in front of Elena; she was hunched over gasping on the floor, desperately clutching at the wooden stake lodged into her neck. Jeremy coldly raised his stake to finish her off. The roles were reversed, but the feeling that smacked into me was exactly the same, it yanked me back to that night on our kitchen floor. Jeremy, blindly consumed with something far bigger than himself, was about to end his sister's life.

"Jeremy!" I screamed out, from the very pit of my stomach, from the source of all the misplaced anger and resentment towards my sister, everything she'd done, or messed up, it all came out with that scream.

"Get out of here." Jeremy scorned, without so much as a little glance over his shoulder.

"Jeremy, you don't want to do this, okay?" I implored him, desperately, "That's your sister! It's that stupid mark on your arm!"

"Shut up, Ro!" Jeremy barked back.

This time he wavered and took his gaze off Elena for one second. It was enough for me to think that I was coaxing him back.

"Jeremy, look at me!" I whined, and begged him, "I'm not a vampire! I am your sister! And I am telling you not to hurt her. Jeremy. LOOK AT ME!"

Jeremy hesitated for another moment, but it wasn't enough to bring him back. He looked at the vampire gasping for breath on the floor in front of him and that is all that he saw. I screamed out, and lunged for him, but Stefan beat me to it. He flashed into the room, grabbed Jeremy, and slammed him up against the wall; he literally slammed some sense into him.

"Get him out of here!" Stefan roared at me.

He pushed Jeremy back in my direction. I caught him, grabbed his arm and pulled him out of there.

"Come on. Jer, come on!" I groaned, "Let's get out of here."

Stefan fell to his knees in front of Elena and I heard her cry out in pain as he pulled the stake from her neck.

* * *

 **New Old Gilbert House - Jeremy's Bedroom**

The sound of rustling and rummaging was coming from Jeremy's bedroom. We shared a wall, and in some respects, the same coping methods. He wasn't tidying up. He was bailing. He was packing a bag. I lent against the door frame and asked him, "What are you doing?"

Jeremy stopped for a second and reminded me of today's horror show. He said, sadly, "I can't keep living here if I want to kill my sister."

"Stop." I rasped, and sauntered over to him, "Elena knows that. That's why she moved out and Matt is moving in with us."

Jeremy looked up at me, confused, and asked, "What?"

"He's heading over now." I explained, "Look, he's not one of them, Jer. He's a regular third party human. He will keep an eye on you and together we can keep this Hunter business in check."

"Where's Elena gonna go?" Jeremy asked.

I stared back at him, and waited for him to get there. It was pretty obvious where she was gonna end up; it all worked out perfectly for those two. I parked myself down on the edge of his bed and told him, "We just got this little piece of our old lives back, Jeremy, so we're gonna stay and we're gonna enjoy it. We'll figure it out."

"Hey, you're back there." He laughed, and playfully punched my shoulder.

I nodded and turned my attention back to his bag. I pulled his stuff out and laughed, "What the hell were you even packing, we have like...no stuff."


	48. One Ridiculous Problem At A Time

**Mystic Falls High School**

"I texted you!" Caroline hissed at me, and took me by the hand, dragging me back into the girl's bathroom I'd just emerged from. True. She'd demanded to know my exact location and insisted that she speak with me right this very second. I assumed it was something school-spirit related, and didn't rush to reply.

"Okay, what?" I asked and watched as her beady little eyes wiggled their way around the entire room. I sighed and said, "There's no one in here."

"Okay." She said, and began, "Were you invited to the Salvatore Slumber Party?"

"Yeah, I'm...hanging with Jeremy instead, I've had my fill of that house, and I thought you and Bonnie were going?" I said.

"We are." She asserted, and then threw in a curve-ball, "Look...Stefan stayed at my house last night."

"What?" I laughed, "That was fast."

"NO. No!" Caroline whined, "You know what was fast? Elena dumping Stefan to get with Damon, so super fast after she became a vampire, and we figured it out last night! The reason for the fastness and the complete insanity of such a decision is because she is _sired_ to the blood of the guy that turned her into a vampire in the first place."

I stared back at her, blankly, quite confused, and she returned the stare with wide eyes and a bobbing head. I repeated her statement, to be certain I'd heard her right, "Damon...Elena is sired to Damon?"

"Yes, Damon!" Caroline implored, "Think about it. Every time Elena's had a problem, Damon's been the magic solution. Elena was worried about Jeremy. Who swoops in and tells her to relax? Damon. And she listens. When Elena started feeding, who said that she could only drink blood straight from the vein? Damon! And when she tried to drink from animals and blood bags? She couldn't keep it down. Name one vampire in the history of vampires who couldn't drink blood from a blood bag. Damon said she couldn't, so she couldn't. Damon likes the red dress. Elena likes the red dress. Damon says kill Connor and she kills Connor. Elena is sired to Damon! Which means her one singular burning desire is to make him happy, just like Klaus and his hybrids!"

I rubbed my face in exhaustion, and sighed, "Okay...that was all a very neat explanation, but it's not the only one."

"Everything he says, she agrees with." Caroline said, "Everything he asks her to do...she does."

"Wait. We don't entirely know how this all works, if it's even real." I suggested, "There's a couple of doors here. She might just...love Damon."

"Oh. Don't do that." Caroline whined, "Don't be all devil's advocate. You know it makes sense!"

"Look. Whatever this is, you need to make sure that you are completely sure before you blow everything up." I implored, "And I'm headed out to the Lake House with Jeremy after school to work on his 'don't murder Elena' mindset, so you're gonna have to take lead on this. One ridiculous problem at a time!"

* * *

 **Gilbert Lake House**

Jeremy and I were training with the pads outside. Damon was supposed to be back here training Jeremy, but he was out on the dock listening to his voicemails from Elena, again. He eventually turned them off and rejoined us, perching against the picnic bench, and staring pensively across the lake. Elena and Damon were supposed to be keeping away from each other, given that their relationship was tainted with the uncertain contribution of that pesky sire bond; and they were both moping about it, hard.

Jeremy had made pretty decent progress at the Lake House. He'd started off the week controlled by his innate desire to wipe out all vampires, lunging to stake Elena on the regular, but now, with the help of Bonnie and Professor Shane, he had mastered a new coping mechanism, which involved thinking warm fuzzy thoughts about Bonnie to ground him back into his right mind, and put down the stake. It wasn't an easy process by any means. The warped train of thought that spewed out of Jeremy during their sessions was hard to hear: _Elena ruined our lives. She's not even my real sister. She's just the reason that everyone I've ever loved has died. She means nothing to me. I will kill her even if that means I die myself._

Yeah. Ouch. But we persevered. We got there.

"Have you heard from Hayley?" Jeremy asked me, as he boxed the pads I held.

"You mean, since she led 12 hybrids to the slaughter, sent Tyler running for his life, and riled Klaus up so much that he murdered Carol Lockwood? Uh, no." I admitted, sarcastically, "Not since then."

I should perhaps back up a little here. Klaus had held Carol Lockwood's head under the water in the fountain right outside of her house, until she died. He had done this because A, he's the devil incarnate, and B, as twisted revenge against Tyler for disobeying him, and working behind his back, with Hayley, to free 12 hybrids from the servitude of their sire bond to Klaus. Hayley had orchestrated the massacre of said hybrids.

"She never struck me as diabolical." Jeremy said.

"She's not. Well...I guess I don't know her as well as I thought I did. Or maybe my good intentions radar is on the fritz." I suggested, and recalled, "And I was complicit in the murder of her hybrid friend, so maybe she's thinking the same thing about me."

"Her rap sheet is way worse than yours, twelve times worse, and Tyler's mom? No contest." Jeremy scoffed, "Besides, we did what we had to do to stop our sister from killing herself."

"Well, okay, then what was her reason?" I asked him, "Maybe I should reach out."

"Ro. Come on! You're way too nice." Jeremy said, and wiped his brow, "And you give people way too much credit. There's no reason good enough, alright? Forget her. All right, now go ahead. I'm ready. Make a move."

I snorted and said, "I'm supposed to be helping you, not kicking your ass."

Jeremy laughed and said, "Come on. No pyro. Try it!"

I dropped the pads and shrugged, feigning that I was getting psyched up and instantly lunged into him. Jeremy grabbed my arm, and launched me clean over his shoulder, and slammed me on to the ground.

"Okay! I get it, I get it." I groaned and rubbed my back, "You're a bad-ass."

Jeremy smirked, and yanked me up to my feet. It felt as though he was ripping my arm out of it's socket. I groaned again. He was definitely benefiting from his sudden super powers.

"Did you see that?" Jeremy hollered over to Damon.

"Couldn't miss it." Damon sneered, "It was in slow motion."

"Then teach me something useful." Jeremy scorned and huffed about, "We've been here for days, and so far, all you've done is bark orders."

Damon glared back at Jeremy and grunted, "Okay." He grabbed one of the stakes from the picnic table and sauntered over to us. He turned to me and requested, "Take a seat on the bench, Legally Blonde. Karate Kid wants a shot at the title."

"Jeremy, you're not ready for this." I implored.

I was by no means a prized fighter, getting the drop on me was not in any way note-worthy. He brushed off my concern. Damon tossed the stake over into Jeremy's hands. Jeremy tightened his grip around the weapon and he ran towards Damon. Damon, with little effort and with a considerable speed advantage, grabbed Jeremy by the arm and yanked him back into a headlock.

"Now, all I have to do is apply a little pressure under your jaw." Damon said, and upon noticing the Lakeside Pizza delivery car trundling up the driveway, he sighed, and said, "Really? Again?"

Jeremy tapped Damon's arm in submission, but Damon would not let him go.

"Damon." I scorned.

"Say it." Damon sang.

"We get it." I sighed and declared, " _You_ are a bad-ass."

Damon smirked happily, and then let go of Jeremy dramatically.

" _The_ Bad-Ass, Barbaroonie, I was looking for _The_." Damon jeered.

Cue the eye roll.

"Double pepperoni, three days in a row." The pizza girl laughed as she sauntered up to us, "You guys eat anything else?"

Damon flashed right up behind her and asked, "Why? Are you offering?"

She spun around, startled, as Damon snatched the pizza out of her hand, and handed over a bunch of bills. He explained, "That's something extra to cut off the pizza pipeline for a couple a days. No matter how much they beg, don't come back."

"Sorry, guys." The girl grinned, and sauntered back to her truck.

"What? You're going to starve us now?" Jeremy scorned.

"If that's what it takes to make you into a Hunter." Damon spat back, "Now, run around the lake...twice." Jeremy gave Damon a filthy look before jogging away. Damon rolled his head to glare at me, "Keep him company."

"I don't have to listen to you." I said.

"You do if you want to eat." Damon scorned.

I took off running. Damon sat back and listened to the end of the voice message from Elena, again.

* * *

Jeremy loaded the wooden bullets into his gun, as instructed, and handed the gun back to Damon.

"Good." Damon determined, and then released the clip immediately, and scattered the bullets across the table. He dictated, "Now, do it like your life depends on it, 'cause it does."

"Don't act like you care about my life." Jeremy scorned at him, "You care about the Hunter's mark and curing Elena so she's not sired to your ass."

"Both require you to be alive." Damon sneered, "Which is why I updated our relationship status to 'it's complicated.'" His face fell a little away from its usual smugness and was peppered with something more sincere. His gaze did a loop between us and then right back to the floor, as he asked, "Have you talked to her at all? Elena?"

"Maybe." Jeremy scoffed.

I asked him, "Why? Running out of voicemails to listen to?"

Damon bit his cheek and glared back at me; I relished it. He was about to say something smart but was interrupted by Klaus Mikaelson sauntering out through the treeline.

"I'm sorry." Klaus sang, with a wide grin, "Did I interrupt play time?"

I rose from the table and turned to greet the intruder with a face of thunder.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Jeremy scorned.

"I'm simply appreciating the sights and smells of nature, neither of which presently include rotting vampire flesh, so I'm a bit concerned." Klaus explained. He turned his attention to Damon and asked, "How many vampires has he killed?"

"If we throw Jeremy out into the world right now, he's chum." Damon explained.

Jeremy subtly stepped back, so that I was sandwiched between him and Damon. It was a nice gesture, but there was no requirement to keep the pyro at bay here, none at all. I could feel my skin tingling already, ever since the shrill announcement of his arrival had pierced the relaxed air; that same air I used to focus and tether my power to reason, to control, the power that was simmering just beneath the surface, ready, daring a move to be made.

"Yeah, see, that's not a number." Klaus said, "Twelve; that's a number; that's how many of my hybrids I slaughtered with my sword. Three; that's how many days it took to quell the urge to kill your brother after he knowingly watched as I walked into a death trap. One; that's the number of purposes you serve. You are here to grow Jeremy's mark, so I'll ask again...how many vampires has he killed since he's been here?"

"Zero." Damon admitted.

Klaus smirked and said, "That's a pity. I'm going to need that cure sooner rather than later. Hybrid shortage and all. How can I help?"

Damon picked up the gun, and said, "You know, now that you mention it...Jeremy, watch and learn."

He shot Klaus square in the chest multiple times. My shoulders bunched at the sudden bangs. Klaus was leant against a tree, grunting from pain, and glowering at Damon.

"That's for Carol Lockwood." Damon declared, tersely, and threw the gun down onto the table.

He sauntered away. I glanced at Jeremy, a little speechless. Neither of us liked Damon. But in that moment, hell, we respected him.

* * *

I heard a faint knock at the back door, and was a little confused at who it could be. Damon had disappeared into the night for what I assumed was a moody moonlight stroll, but he was devoid of manners, so I knew it wasn't him chapping lightly on the back door. My next thought was that maybe Jeremy had invited a certain someone up here to hang out. It wasn't Bonnie. It was the blonde, smiley pizza girl from before.

"Am I ordering pizzas subconsciously now?" I asked her.

"No, I'm just an idiot." She laughed, "I ran out of gas, and my phone's dead. You think I could use yours?"

"Yeah, come in." I said, "I'll run upstairs and grab my cell."

I found my phone, which was left on my bed, and quickly scrolled through a missed message from Natalie: Adam drama, again, blah blah blah.

The pizza girl had appeared in the doorway and asked me, "Did you find your phone?"

Before I could turn, before the word 'yeah' could escape my lips, she'd tackled me to the ground. I groaned out under the sudden weight of her body on top of mine, completely confused at what the hell was going on.

"GET OFF ME!" I screamed out.

She straddled me, her mess of blonde hair obscuring her face, only when I caught sight of her contorted eyes did I realise that she was attempting to bite me. I slammed a fiery fist into her head, which sent her recoiling back, screaming in agony as the flames took over her, lighting up her hair, her clothing, and then igniting her skin. Still, she clawed after me in futility. I shuffled back on my ass, further away from her. Jeremy thundered into the room, a stake in hand. He wasn't needed. The girl screamed out as she desiccated and died. Damon walked in, drawn back into the house by my screaming, following the stench and the smoke, and he saw what had happened here.

"Goddammit!" Damon scorned at Jeremy as he batted the girl's burning body with a blanket, "She was for you! You don't get any points for assists!"

"You...you turned her?" I huffed out, "She tried to kill me!"

"No. I didn't. And newsflash, Barbie. You can't die!" Damon shot back.

"This was Klaus?!" Jeremy scorned.

"This was a nudge to get a move on! I'll bury pizza girl." Damon said, and dragged the girl's charred dead body out of my bedroom.

"You okay?" Jeremy asked, surveying the marks left around my neck, which were slowly disappearing before his eyes.


	49. Easiest, Fastest, Safest, Murdery-est

**Zanadew Lounge - 02:00**

The jukebox in the corner of the bar was providing a bluesy soundtrack to the harrowing murder scene we were walking through. Jeremy, Damon and I stared, in varying degrees of horror, at all of the dead bodies slumped throughout the place. Klaus was sat at the bar, casually pouring himself another drink.

"I was beginning to worry you wouldn't find the place." Klaus declared, and swiveled around on his bar stool to greet us.

"What the hell?" Jeremy huffed out, surveying the wreckage around us.

"Did you kill all these people?" I asked him.

"Not exactly. They're in transition." He explained, and then told Jeremy, "Killing them is _your_ job."

Jeremy and I looked back at Damon; he didn't protest, he didn't so much as flinch. I took a moment to check myself, and berate myself for actually being surprised. This was Damon! He shows compassion and care for his friends, he defends their honour and their memory, he fires excruciating wooden bullets into the chest of their murderers, and then he regresses right back.

"You said you were going to convince Klaus to do this another way!" Jeremy scorned at him.

"Well, I thought about it, and then I realised his idea was better." Damon said, dryly.

Klaus smiled and took a long sip of his bourbon. Jeremy stared back at Damon in disbelief. My glare snapped over to the dead bodies that were now slowly twitching and coming around.

"No way." Jeremy scoffed, "I'm not doing this."

"What makes you think you have a choice?" Klaus asked him, coolly, and propped his drink down on the bar.

"You have to kill vampires to complete the Hunter's mark. Mark equals cure." Damon posed to Jeremy, "You're in a bar full of almost vampires, so...get your hunt on."

"Screw you." Jeremy scorned back, "You said I wouldn't have to kill any innocent people."

"Jeremy, they're not people." Damon implored.

"Enough!" Klaus barked, abruptly, "Have at it, _or else_."

"I don't take orders from you, dick." Jeremy scorned, and dropped his stake as though it were a mic, "Hunters can't be compelled."

Klaus laughed, darkly, and sauntered right up to Jeremy. He said, "You're right. I can't compel you. But if your conscience is getting in the way, then allow me to make this easy for you. Because, I can compel them." He gestured around to the compelled humans who were now feeding their blood to the vampires in transition. He announced, "I'm gonna give you a two-minute head start. Then, I'm gonna send every vampire in here after you. You kill them, or they kill your sister...Rosanna."

"Wait a second!" I huffed out.

"No. No. You turn them, he kills them." Damon scorned, "That was the deal, Klaus."

"I'm taking artistic license." Klaus declared.

In the blink of an eye, Klaus had snatched my wrist and yanked me back into his choke hold. He sunk his teeth down, hard, and rapidly drained a lot of my blood. Jeremy launched a stake at him, which he caught with ease, and returned swiftly to its sender, and then, he threw my weakened body back to Damon.

"Just evening the playing field for my new friends here, love. Nothing personal." Klaus explained to me, as he wiped my blood from his mouth and hands onto the faces of the vampires. They snarled and salivated in response.

"You know he can't take them all on at the same time." Damon scorned.

"With you as his coach, he'll be fine." Klaus said, "It's poor Rosanna I'm worried about."

Damon's vice-like grip on my arms was all that was keeping me upright. I knew this feeling all too well, at the hands of the same ass-hole. I felt like I'd drank an entire storehouse of bourbon all at once, and the booze had shot its way straight to my brain. Everything hurt; breathing, thinking, standing, hating.

"Ah...Jeremy, go get the weapons out of the car. I'll be right behind you." Damon said, and then looked down at me, and whispered, "Both of you."

Jeremy took my arm and we ran out of the bar.

"If I hear an engine start, I'll kill her myself!" Klaus shouted after us.

I glanced back one last time. I saw his smug-ass grin, the way he carried himself, more electric and energized since his snack, and I saw that all of the transitioning vampires were now standing in formation behind Klaus, awaiting his command.

* * *

 **Lakeside Woods - 02:18**

I was frantically running for my life through the pitch-black woods, and Jeremy was hanging back, attempting to pick off the horde of new crazed vampires who were high on the scent of my blood. Classic Saturday night for the Gilberts, right? A vampire was definitely closing in on me. I stopped and hid behind a tree to catch my breath. I crept around and glanced behind the tree; nothing was there. Okay, here we go, I thought to myself as I pushed up and carried on. As I turned my head back, a body slammed into mine, ripping teeth sunk deep into my neck again, exactly where Klaus had already ravaged me. An arrow pierced it's way into the vampire's heart, and it slumped down to the ground. In my severely weakened state, I fell down with it. Spots were dancing over my vision, but eventually I focused in on Jeremy's face. He pushed something against my bleeding neck.

"Are you okay?" He asked, sounding all echoed to me.

"Yeah, I just need a second." I huffed out.

"We don't have a second." Jeremy implored, "They can smell your blood. We need to go."

Jeremy must have heard something behind him; I certainly didn't. I was solely focused on keeping my eyes open; that was enough to ask right now. He swiftly turned around, holding up his bow, but it was just Damon. Damon deflected the bow.

"Don't hesitate!" Damon scorned, "You're lucky it was me. Otherwise you two would be dead."

"I feel dead." I muttered, and slumped my head against the tree.

"You set us up!" Jeremy scorned, and snatched his bow back from Damon.

"I was trying to get this thing over with." Damon said, "You're the one that pissed off Klaus. Now you have to fight your way out of it."

"Where are they?" I huffed out, a little concerned that we had found time for an in-game pep talk.

"They're newbies. They're still trying to figure out how to track, which means you have two seconds to get ready to fight." Damon explained.

"The Lake House is this way. If we can get there, they won't be able to get inside." Jeremy said, as he pulled me up off the ground.

"Wait. You want to run?" Damon scorned.

"They're going to kill Ro." Jeremy scorned.

Damon took one good look at my feeble form, sighed out dramatically, and said, "Fine. Get out of here. I'll slow them down."

Jeremy and I ran towards the Lake House, and a vampire immediately charged at us, but was taken down by Damon. I blocked out the sounds that followed. Jeremy pushed me to run out ahead of him, and he took down another vampire that was following our trail.

"Don't stop!" He barked.

"Jeremy?" I called out, after missing the sound of his thundering footsteps behind me, "Where are you?"

"Keep going. We're almost there." He called back, from somewhere off to my distant right.

I kept running, through the burning pain in my chest, through the laboured and difficult breaths, until I was cut off sharply. I slammed down to the ground, tripped by a snarling, slavering beast. The vampire was stuck to me, saw nothing else but the food before it. He dragged me across the forest floor by my legs until I was right at his feet. My screams were exhausted and hoarse; I struggled against him, my hits were reduced to nothing more than a tired teenage girl fighting desperately for her life. The vampire was about to clamp down, but Elena appeared out of nowhere, snapped the vampire's neck and threw him backwards into the bushes like a rag doll.

"Are you okay?" Elena cried out, and helped me up to my feet. She caught sight of my ravaged neck and chest in the moonlight, splattered with deep blood, and she rasped, painfully, "Oh my god..."

Jeremy thundered through the trees and barked at Elena, "Get to the house! Hurry!"

Jeremy abruptly threw me over his shoulder and ran towards the house, standing in the clearing only a few yards away from us now. He dropped me harshly down onto the back porch and I stumbled up towards the door. Jeremy and Elena turned their attention back to the treeline to cover me.

"Jeremy, what's going on?" Elena asked, pulling on his arm.

"They're coming." Jeremy said, darkly, and followed me through the door, into the sanctuary of the Lake House.

Elena looked back towards the trees, and saw a group of vampires marching towards us. She followed us inside and slammed the door shut.

* * *

 **Gilbert Lake House - 06:15**

Jeremy finally relinquished his gun, resting it against the window ledge, and he declared, "Sun's up. They're long gone."

Elena was busy wiping away the dried blood from my mostly healed neck wound. Damon entered the room, with a freshly poured bourbon for himself, and ignited fury inside of Elena. She shot up, and threw her rag down. She scorned, "What the hell were you thinking?! All I asked you to do was to teach him how to fight."

"He's not the best student in the world." Damon said, and shrugged.

"Wait. Now this is my fault?" Jeremy whined.

"Stop talking." Damon scorned back at him, and told Elena, "Look, I know you're angry, but my way was the easiest, fastest, and safest."

"And murdery-est." I groaned from the couch, keeping my eyes closed, not entirely relishing the argument flying back and forth across my pounding head.

Damon ignored me, and reminded her, "We need to complete his mark to get you the cure."

Elena's shoulders bunched up sharply, and she groaned, "I don't care about the cure, Damon. Not if it means putting the people that I love in danger."

"Hey, there would have been no danger if he hadn't gone all bleeding heart." Damon scoffed.

"He killed someone! These were innocent people." Elena whined.

"The mark grew, didn't it?" Damon asked.

Elena sighed heavily, and said, "Okay. Look. We need a plan. There's a group of compelled vampires out there, and as soon as the sun goes down, they're gonna come after Rosanna, so we have to find a way to protect her."

"Oh, pfft, I have a pretty effective way." I scoffed, and sat up from the couch. I was already feeling much better, and stronger, and mightily pissed off.

"NO. No. No. Sit your ass down." Damon said, and pushed my attempt to stand up back down. He walked over to Jeremy and flung his arm around his shoulder. He explained, "Big Jer and I here are going on a hunting expedition." Upon noticing that Elena was completely not on board with the plan, he sighed and said, "Elena, I know, it's tragic. I get it. But we also agree that he had to kill them. Now, we have added incentive. Rosanna will stay here, keep them sniffing around the immediate area, and she will try not to burn the house down in a fit of tween-age angst. Jeremy and I will finish this."

"I'm sorry?" Elena scoffed, "Are you saying I should leave them here with you?"

"Trust me. I will keep them safe. Superhero Barbie is recharged and back in the game. But it won't come to that. Okay?" Damon said.

Elena looked at him, warily, before eventually nodding her head. The ease at which she sided with him, and dropped from furious to understanding in approximately 12 seconds, that could have been down the sire bond. But it didn't account for why she was sneaking around in the vampire-infested woods surrounding our Lake House at two in the morning, Damon hadn't asked her to do that.

* * *

 **Back to the Zanadew Lounge**

Jeremy, Damon and I headed back into the bar; the jukebox was still eerily humming along in the background. We walked in, cautiously, and a powerful stench hit our nostrils almost immediately.

"Ugh." I groaned out, and covered my nose and mouth, "It stinks."

Damon stepped around the massive splatter of blood across the floor, and declared, "Something's not right. Look alive, kids."

"Okay, last time I came across _this_ , Alaric stabbed me in the gut and I burned the house down." I whispered to Jeremy, who simply raised his brow and his bow up in response.

"Remember, Goldilocks, side lines." Damon hissed at me, "No stealing all the glory. You do nothing unless someone's going for his jugular."

Damon led the way, following the ominous trail of blood into the back storage room. A giant pile of vampire corpses were slumped in the corner, neatly presented as the clear culprits of the stench. I will admit, a small part of me was disappointed...okay, larger than small; I desperately wanted this side show to be over; I'd dipped over and back across the 'is this the right thing to do' line all night, and maybe it was due to the blood loss or maybe it was the pain and agony of once again occupying that jagged space so excruciatingly close to death without any end in sight...I don't know. I was now squatting on the other side: let's get this over with.

"Looks like we're gonna have to find some new vampires." Damon sighed, and groaned, "What a waste."

"What the hell happened?" Jeremy asked the room.

"I confess." Kol said, as he sauntered through the plastic curtain behind us, with his hands raised in sarcastic submission, "I did it."

Damon and Jeremy spun in unison at the intrusion; the compound bow slammed up into position. My shoulders bunched at hearing his voice, and I turned at a slightly reduced pace to face him.

"Kol?" Jeremy said.

"Jeremy, good to see you, mate. Rosie, always a pleasure." Kol greeted us, and gestured around to all the corpses, "Sorry about the mess. Ugh, it was a little crowded when I arrived, and I prefer more intimate gatherings. And we need to have a little chat." Kol took a slow sip of his bourbon, straight from the bottle. He offered the bottle to us, and asked, "Care for a drink?"

I glared back at him.

"They're underage, and I don't like you, so let's just cut to it." Damon replied.

"My brother bragged about his plan to complete Jeremy's Hunter's mark. It was easy enough to track this lot down. They were all hiding in the shadows. Now, killing young vampires is easy, or old ones, for that matter." Kol said, oh so subtly.

"Why?" Damon asked, "What's it to you either way?"

"Because, you fools, in your zeal to find the cure, you risk waking someone very dangerous." Kol scorned back.

"Oh...you must be talking about Silas." Damon said.

"What do you know of him?" Kol asked, tersely.

All of the twisted joviality and smugness had snapped right out of him. I never professed to know the guy all too well, much to my desperately repressed shame, but I'd never imagined this stark opposition to the way he'd always carried himself, and spoke. It was unsettling. I'm not saying that I never took Kol serious, or as a threat, but even back when he was beating on Damon with a baseball bat, he was still...well, Kol, not this guy. The happy part of his darkly affectionate nickname had completely disappeared, and he was just another homicidal maniac.

"Nothing!" Damon remarked, "Don't want to. Not our problem."

"Isn't it?" Kol scoffed.

"Uh-uh." Damon sang.

"A few hundred years back, I came across a group that worshipped Silas. His followers told me that he would rise again, and when he did, he would trigger the end of all time." Kol explained, tersely, "You know, being an immortal, you can see why I'm opposed to time's ending. So I murdered all of them. And now, here you are willing to risk raising him in your search for the cure. I can't exactly sit back and let that happen, can I?"

"We're not going to back off the cure 'cause you were told one too many scary bedtime stories, you idiot." Damon sneered.

Kol shoved Damon back from his saunter, and appealed to my brother, "Jeremy, we were mates in Colorado. You're a smart lad. Why don't you call off this imbecilic treasure hunt?"

Jeremy, still toting a crossbow aimed at Kol's chest, replied, "I'm not calling anything off, mate."

Kol took a step backward and placed his bourbon down coolly on the shelf, as he mused, "Well I could kill you. But then, I'd have to deal with the Hunter's Curse. And I don't particularly feel like being haunted for the next century-" A smirk crept across his face and he turned to me directly, posing, "-could make our rendezvous' rather awkward if all I'm seeing is your brother." I cringed at the slight flicker of Jeremy's gaze on to me. His comment had done it's job. Kol commanded the room once more, declaring, "Better idea. I'll just rip off your arms."

He rushed at Jeremy, but Damon rammed Kol into the wall and head-butt him. The two fought fiercely.

"RUN!" Damon roared.

* * *

 **New Old Gilbert House - Kitchen**

Elena had to beg Klaus to call his little brother off and return Damon to her. Kol obliged his brother's request, but not before he compelled Damon to kill Jeremy; no Hunter's Curse for Kol, and Silas stays buried; it was a slam dunk for him. Stefan was able to put Damon down at the last moment, and sentenced him to their basement cell of horror until the compulsion wore off.

After a peculiar visit from Klaus that evening, proclaiming that he was here to protect the Hunter, and thus the map to the cure, we'd promptly slammed the door in his face, and regrouped together in the kitchen for a much needed Gilbert Family meeting. Klaus had made us all too aware that Kol would not stop, ever, and he himself was a necessary evil for the time being. It was a total and complete mess.

Jeremy leant against the back of a dining chair and shook his head. He complained, "This is never gonna end. If Kol doesn't kill me first, then Klaus is just gonna force me to kill more innocent people. How many is it gonna take? 10? 100?"

The idea had sparked as soon as Elena began explaining what Kol had tried to do to my brother, to our family, and then, after sitting with the expression of defeat across both of their faces that night, and the continued risk and further attempts on Jeremy's life, and the disgust and disappointment in my own being for trusting that ass-hole; it all doused and fueled the flame higher and brighter. I stepped forward, steady, believing that this _was_ the only way, and I said, "If you kill one Original vampire, their entire sire line will die with them. That's thousands, maybe tens of thousands of vampires."

"Yeah, but-" Elena muttered.

"Kol compelled Damon to kill you." I uttered, darkly, directly to Jeremy, "You're gonna kill Kol instead."

Jeremy looked at Elena, uncertainly, who thought about it for a moment, and then nodded in agreement.


	50. Invite Me In

**New Old Gilbert House - Kitchen**

It was decided, through an exceptionally awkward conversation, that I was going to be Kol bait. Jeremy handed his phone over to me, reluctantly. My heart thumped in my ears as I waited for Kol to pick up. Kol answered, cordially, "Jeremy Gilbert. Nice to see I'm still on your speed dial, mate. Hey, you want to meet up at the batting cages in Denver?"

"Actually, it's Rosanna Gilbert." I replied.

In the background, Jeremy and Elena were preparing the weapons, shoving them into bags, and hiding them all over the house.

"What a treat." Kol sang in my ear, and mused, "You know, I was just thinking of all the clever ways I could have your brother killed, but I'd settle for just ripping off his illustrated arm instead, since it's you, darling."

"I need to talk to you, in person." I told him.

"Novel. We never did a whole lot of that." He chuckled.

I bit my tongue, swallowed a smart remark, and said, "I wanna call a truce, in the name of Silas."

"You want to talk about Silas?" He asked. The joviality had all but vanished from his tone; a chilling reminder of our storage room reunion.

"I'll meet you wherever you want." I said, and offered, "I'll come to you."

"I'll tell you what." He said, and rebutted, "How about I come to you?"

The doorbell rang and everyone's shoulders bunched up in response. Jeremy cocked his gun and spun, pointing the weapon at the door. We all looked at each other; Elena and Jeremy stared back at me, in confusion, begging me to take some sort of lead here. I was just as baffled.

"If you want a truce, open the door and invite me in." Kol declared.

Oh so slightly flustered by the unexpected turn of events, I looked around for our next move; Elena flapped her arms around in silent desperation; Jeremy kept his gun fixated on the front door, his attention switching back and forth between his sisters.

"I'm waiting." Kol said, into my ear, "Let me in, and let's talk truce."

I grabbed a notepad from the counter and started furiously scribbling.

"Hello?" Kol bellowed.

"Wouldn't that be kind of stupid to invite you in?" I asked, filling the dead air as I frantically scribbled away.

"On the contrary, I can't kill your brother with my own two hands, or I'll suffer the Hunter's curse and spend the next 20 years trying to off myself in gruesome ways." Kol explained.

I showed the note to Elena which read ' _Help Stefan find dagger_ ', and she disappeared out the back door in a flash.

Kol continued on, "And we all know I can't compel you to kill him either. So, I think it's fair to say you're semi-safe, for now."

I showed Jeremy his note: ' _Get out. Get Bonnie_ '.

Jeremy shook his head, and whispered, "I'm the only one that can invite him inside."

I sighed. He was right. Elena's a vampire and those three freaking minutes that he was older than me made it his house, in kooky vampire logic land.

"He's right, obviously." Kol said, creepily.

I relented and I opened the front door of our family home for Kol. He wrapped up his headphones casually, and declared, "You'd think being alive for over a thousand years would teach me some manners, but I couldn't resist stopping by."

"If I let you in, my brother goes." I said, "You're not getting near him."

"Fair enough." Kol agreed.

I looked back at Jeremy, and nodded. Jeremy invited the Original Vampire inside and then disappeared out the back door.

"No gold medals for bravery, I see." Kol joked, and stepped inside my house for the first time. He mused, "You know the thing I love about the modern age is...music, anytime you like."

He tucked his phone and earphones away inside his pocket, and I caught a brief view of the white oak stake, which was stashed in an inside pocket of Kol's jacket. He stepped closer towards me, a subtle smirk pulling across his face, undoubtedly enjoying the sound of my heart quickening at his sudden proximity, and said, "So...this is the part where you offer me a drink so we can have a proper chat."

I nodded and made way for Kol to saunter through to our kitchen, and then closed the front door.

* * *

"Give me a minute to dig up the old people alcohol." I declared, and began hunting for the bottle of dusty gin I'd seen from Alaric's abandoned stash, surely untouched to this day.

Kol sighed out, in dramatic disappointment, and perched himself on a bar stool at our kitchen island, watching me.

"Yeah, that's the problem with people today!" He declared, "They have no drinking imagination. Turn-of-the-century New Orleans – now, they knew how to make a drink."

"You lived in New Orleans?" I asked him, as I returned from the bottom cupboard, triumphant.

"We all did, till Niklaus shoved a dagger in my heart." Kol replied, tersely.

"Why? What did you do?" I asked him, as I struggled to pry the gin bottle open.

Kol scoffed, and rose from his seat. He spoke sharply and posed, "What makes you think I did anything? Has your alliance with my brother softened you to his horrors? I'd assume being bled dry would still be rather fresh in your mind."

I didn't step back as he encroached on me once more, didn't flinch, didn't look away. Instead, I took him square on, and took exception to his snide remark. I made it very clear, "I don't have an alliance with Klaus. We had a mutual interest in finding the cure – that's all. And it was _you_ , running your mouth, that got me a front row seat to Klaus' horror show.

" _Had_ a mutual interest?" Kol asked, taking the bottle of gin from my hands, and opening it with ease, without the notable amount of elbow grease that I was adopting.

"Fine, skip the blame game part. Yes. Had." I declared, tersely, my eyes glued onto his, "And I'm willing to give up looking for the cure, we all are, if you promise to leave my brother alone." He didn't say anything either way, didn't move, didn't look anywhere else. The proposition hung in the air; it was going to take more than one sentence, and a bit of sass, to cement this deal. I picked up the mixer, and asked him, "Now, can you teach me how to make this?"

I smiled a little as he relented and took the mixer from my hands.

"I'll get some ice." I offered and sauntered over the fridge.

I opened the door and slyly pulled out my phone. Jeremy had texted, ' _Trying to find her. KEEP KOL THERE_.' I'd asked him where the hell Bonnie was, and told him Kol had the stake, hoping he'd alert Elena to the fact. I got the ice and closed the door. Kol was standing right behind it, startling me. I'm not sure my attempt to mask my skittishness was entirely convincing.

I offered the bowl of ice over to him and said, "Here you go."

"Would you like one?" He asked.

I hesitated, and then said, "Sure, why not?"

* * *

Kol was walking around our living room, and picked up a framed photograph of Elena, Jeremy and I as little kids, all joking around, and goofing off. He stared at it intently as I approached him. He set the picture back down and said, "The Little Gilbert Clan is down to it's final members, and look at those little cherub cheeks, all so innocent, so happy, so very human. It just seems odd that you'd all be so willing to give up something you want so very much. A chance to get your big sister back?"

"Elena and I would do anything for our brother." I replied, "And if what you're saying about Silas is true, what does it matter what we want if it puts everyone else in danger?"

"No one's _that_ good, Rosanna." Kol shot back, unconvinced. He shook his head, took a swig of his drink, and said, "Not even you."

I perched on the arm of the sofa and asked him, "No one else seems to think Silas exists, so why do you?"

"I used to run with some witches: Africa in the fourteenth century, Haiti in the seventeenth century, New Orleans in the nineteen hundreds." Kol explained, "They all knew about Silas; that he needed to stay buried. I actually hold witches in high esteem."

"Yeah, but why Silas?" I asked him, "Why are you so afraid of him?"

"They said if Silas rises, he'll unleash Hell on Earth." He explained, "I happen to like Earth just the way it is."

"That's pretty biblical." I scoffed.

"Well, that's the other problem with people today – they've lost faith." He posed, "And in that loss, they no longer know who they should fear." He propped his empty glass down on the side table, leaning over me to do so, and abruptly declared, "Well, this has been enlightening. Thanks for the drinks."

Shit. No. I started to panic as Kol moved to leave the house. I racked my brain, nothing.

Kol opened the front door, and glanced over his shoulder to declare, "I'll take your request for a truce under advisement."

"Is there any chance that you could be wrong about Silas?" I asked him, a sentence so suddenly plopping into my mind.

Kol turned to face me, and determined, from what I could tell, sincerely "I wouldn't risk everything I have on a hunch. Trust me, Rosanna. Some things are better left buried."

* * *

Jeremy returned home, creeping through the front door, cautiously, holding up a gun loaded with wooden bullets, looking for any sign of Kol. He closed the front door and heard me coming through from the kitchen. His aim snatched on to my direction, but relented after realising it was only me.

I'd flinched and raised my hands a little, and uttered, "It's only me. I'm sorry. He left. I mean, I–I tried to stall as long as I could."

"It's okay." Jeremy assured me, and turned to the sound of the doorbell ringing. He explained, "That's Bonnie. She was right behind me."

I nodded and went to open the front door. A little huff of startled air came out of me at realising who was standing there.

"I've considered your request for a truce." Kol stated and his brow furrowed as he seethed, "Request denied."

I panicked. I slammed the door in his face, and followed Jeremy's lead, sprinting up the stairs.

"I'm sorry!" Kol roared, "I've already been invited in!"

Kol kicked the door in; the walls of the house rattled in response.

"Hide and seek?" Kol yelled, "Fine by me!"

* * *

We could hear Kol talking very loudly in the kitchen below us.

 _Did you know that your darling one-time blood bag and her brother are trying to kill me? Don't pretend like you're not in on it. Your obsession to find the cure clearly trumps any sibling loyalty you once felt. I'm going to rip off Jeremy's arm and kill Rosanna just for sport. Then, I'm coming for you._

Kol hung up the phone and began his assault with renewed vigor. I was waiting for him at the top of the staircase with one of Jeremy's crossbows. I fired an arrow into Kol's leg, igniting the projectile as it flew through the air. He groaned out in pain as I scarpered back upstairs. I heard Kol yank out the arrow and then thunder up the stairs.

I sprinted into my bedroom and slammed the door behind me. I heaved my dresser in front of the door, but Kol was there milliseconds after, pushing back against my blockade. Kol managed to shove the door open, with relative ease, and I fell to the ground from the force. I pulled myself up, and hauled ass into the bathroom, slamming the door behind me, and locking it. I burst through into Jeremy's room. Kol slammed his way through both locked doors; he was greeted by Jeremy and I on the other side. Jeremy shot Kol with a stake gun.

Kol caught the stake and scorned, "Missed!"

Jeremy fired again; Kol caught again. I fired my pistol at him, shooting him multiple times in the chest, but he just kept on coming. I screamed at Jeremy, "Go!"

Jeremy ran, and I kept pumping the trigger, hurtling wooden bullets at Kol. Kol launched one of Jeremy's failed stakes at me; hitting me in the thigh. I cried out in agony and fell to the ground clutching my leg. I looked up, but Kol was gone. I could hear them brawl in the hallway. I yanked the stake out of my leg and staggered out to help Jeremy. Kol threw him down the stairs; Jeremy groaned out in pain as his body slammed down.

I jumped on to Kol's back, but he threw me against the wall. He ripped out one of the posts from the railing and shoved it right through me, right through my abdomen, effectively pinning me to the wall. I gasped out in shock and pain, completely immobilized.

"Could probably do with that brooding bodyguard right about now, huh?" Kol whispered in my ear, "Be right back, darling. Don't go anywhere."

He released his hold on the post and licked his fingers, now dripping with my blood. He smacked his lips, and sauntered over to Jeremy, who was grunting in pain on the stair landing. Kol jovially exclaimed, "Now...about that arm!"

He grabbed on to one of Jeremy's ankles and dragged him down the stairs; Jeremy lashed about, snatching to grab the banister posts. I pulled feebly at the stake but couldn't move it. My hands were soaked in blood for trying. I cried out at the horror of it, more than from the pain.

* * *

Okay. Okay. How many times can I say okay? This is not okay. Okay? Okay. One more time. The post still wouldn't budge. It was time to improvise. I braced my hands against the wall and pulled my body off of the stake, struggling and failing to hold in the screams as I did so. The last thing I remember was feeling the hole in my body; I remember realising that there was a hole right the way through my stomach, and that's it. Jeremy filled in the blanks.

Kol had Jeremy strapped down to the counter in the kitchen. Kol pulled out a meat cleaver from the knife block. He was going to chop off both of Jeremy's arms, just to make sure he really eradicated that map. Jeremy closed his eyes as Kol raised the blade over him, and then pinged open at what he heard. I had slammed into Kol, with the strength and ferocity he never imagined could've come from me. The cleaver came down on one of Jeremy's restraints, and then slammed it's way into Kol's chest, in fluid seamless motion; like it was just another dance routine to me.

Jeremy released his other arm and rushed over to the sink. He grabbed the spray hose and lashed Kol with the vervain water, later thanking the new Mayor for the opportune addition to the town's water supply. Kol cried out in pain as the water soaked and seared his skin. I held a grip over Kol's throat, kept him drowning in the burning depths; I snatched up the White Oak stake and tossed it over my shoulder. I kept my gaze locked onto Kol as I stepped back. He never considered I'd be a threat.

Jeremy, almost as baffled as Kol, had dropped the hose, and plunged the White Oak stake straight into Kol's heart. He screamed out and burst into flames. I do remember how he warmed me; how I welcomed the warmth. He continued to scream as he staggered throughout the kitchen, in vain, and finally fell to the floor, dead.

Jeremy had pulled me back away from the burning man, and pulled my gaze up to him, patting my cheek, calling me back to him. I looked at him, for the first time in a while, and he nodded in uncertainty. I looked down at Kol, I looked at the thick blood oozing through my shirt, and I felt it all, all at once. Then I noticed that Jeremy had clocked something behind me. I followed his concerned look and saw Klaus was standing in the open doorway, a direct line of sight through our house, through to the last seconds of his brother's life. He looked upset and then...it went back to his default: murderous.

"What did you do?" Klaus seethed.

"We didn't have a choice." I implored, "He was trying to cut off Jeremy's arm!"

"Lies!" Klaus scorned, "He never would've gotten inside if you hadn't have set a trap for him."

"You said you were going to put him down too." I implored.

Klaus bellowed, furiously, "I was going to make him suffer on my terms!" He sighed out harshly and then declared, "I'm going to burn this house to the ground. And then, when you try to flee for your lives, I'll kill you both without blinking."

"You kill us, you'll never get to the cure." Jeremy shot back, "You'll never be able to make any more of your hybrids."

"You really think I care for an instant about my bloody hybrids?" Klaus barked back, incredulously, "I want the cure so I can destroy it. I would've killed you all the second we dug it up, but now I'm just gonna watch you burn instead."

Oh...nice. Klaus randomly slammed down onto his knees and cried out in agony. Bonnie stormed up the front steps and brushed past the agonized vampire.

"Invite him in!" Bonnie demanded, and with no time to quell our confusion, she insisted, "Do it!"

"Come in." Jeremy uttered.

Klaus fell forward as Bonnie magically pulled him inside the house and immobilized him.

"Living room." Bonnie ordered, "Go!"

Jeremy and I ran through the living room and scarpered around the corner, into the kitchen. Klaus followed suit, but slammed into an invisible wall separating the rooms. He punched at the air in heated frustration, banging against the invisible barrier with all his might. Jeremy yanked the white oak stake out of Kol's crispy body, and pushed me to run back to the front door, back to Bonnie. Klaus followed us back around, and found Bonnie's twisted grin on the other side.

"Witch, you can't do this to me." Klaus seethed in Bonnie's face.

"You have no idea what I can do now." Bonnie hissed right back.

"I will hunt all of you to your end!" Klaus bellowed after us as we filed out of the house, "Do you hear me? Do you!?"


	51. Stand By Me

**New Old Gilbert House - Kitchen**

Caroline and I had been drafted into babysitting duty, watching over Klaus whilst the others went off to Nova Scotia on their expedition. It was by no means a quiet week for the B Team. Caroline had almost died from the poison in Klaus' bite, Elena had called and frantically recruited us as researchers, translating ancient Aramaic text into a map to Silas, and then Klaus had ultimately broken free early from his plush jail cell, promising to end Tyler, but granting him the small mercy of head start.

Caroline and I were busy scrubbing the kitchen floor when the front door suddenly opened, finally putting an end to the radio silence we'd endured all day.

I rose up, in gratitude, and sauntered through to greet the undoubtedly weary travelers, "Hey, you're home! We've been trying to clean that burn mark, but I'm pretty sure it's a permanent feature now-"

I froze, and my blood ran cold as soon as my eyes met Stefan's. The look in his eyes stopped any possible scrambling for another reason, another explanation, another version of the unthinkable, the unspeakable truth. His eyes...they were just, so...broken. Stefan was carrying my brother in his arms, but I could only see the tuft of matted brown hair sticking out at the top, his body was wrapped up inside a thick wool blanket.

Caroline appeared at my side, and uttered to them, "We-we couldn't get the spot out."

Stefan shook his head a little at Caroline, and he fought to stay composed. Caroline grabbed on to my hand, tightly. Someone say it, I thought, you have to say it, out loud.

Elena turned to Stefan, and she insisted, calmly, "Come on. Let's get him upstairs."

Stefan followed Elena up the stairs, and I finally exhaled. I stood there, immobile, and I rasped out, "W-why is she...what's happening?"

Caroline turned to face me, and she tucked her hair behind her ears, listening intently to their conversation. She told me, "She said...she's waiting until he wakes up."

* * *

I was sat out on the front porch, alone, for a minute, staring at my cell phone screen. I started dialing Elijah's number. I let it ring for another beat, and then I thought better of it, and I hung up. It wasn't pride that made me hang up, it was self-preservation. If I spoke to him, and I articulated what had happened on that island, reality would start to seep in, and it would become real. I wasn't a puddle on the floor right now because...I just didn't understand. Stefan was heartbroken. Caroline was confused. Elena was calm, and collected. No one was howling and wailing, and smashing up the place.

I nodded along as Stefan told me what had happened, and I bit the inside of my cheek. My eyes watered but the dam didn't bust open; they were primed, they were ready, but...I still didn't fully accept it. Katherine had followed them out to the island. She fed Jeremy to Silas. That's...how he was raised. His blood was drained. He was wearing the Gilbert ring, but he was supernatural at death, so it wouldn't bring him back; Stefan really needed me to hear that.

Elena articulated her position, one of unwavering hope, very clearly. His tattoo was gone. The tattoo had the spell that opened Silas' chamber. Maybe it being gone meant that he'd fulfilled his supernatural destiny. Maybe he was back to normal. She was optimistic and hopeful, until proven otherwise, and berated Stefan for filling my head with uncertain lies.

Stefan came out of the house, and offered me a cup of tea, which I graciously accepted.

"Caroline has gone to get Dr. Fell." I told him, "I thought that she would be able to...you know-"

"Yeah. That's a good idea." Stefan said, and sat down beside me. He ran his hands through his hair, clearly exhausted by everything to do with that trip, and he said, "You know, I've been alive for almost two centuries now. You'd think with the amount of people that I've seen die, it would hurt less each time. Never does."

"No...it does not." I said, quietly.

We stewed in another minute of silence, and then he filled another by asking, "Did Caroline mention where Tyler is?"

"As far away from Klaus as he can get." I replied, "Klaus said he wouldn't stop until he found him."

"Well, Katherine's been running from Klaus for 500 years. It's not easy, but it's possible." Stefan suggested, "It's probably why she stole the cure. She wants to bargain for her freedom."

"Let's not talk about her." I rasped. I shook my head, and lamented, "I just can't believe after all that, the cure is just gone. It was all for nothing. We are where we are...for nothing."

Stefan said, "In my head, I was thinking there was no way Elena was gonna stay a vampire forever..."

"Well, we can't think about that right now. We need a plan. We need a funeral or a cover story, or a funeral _and_ a cover story, if this goes another way." I muttered.

Stefan reached out and took my hand. My glistening gaze traveled up to meet his. He told me, "You don't need to do anything, right now. You don't need to worry about anything. And you don't have to be strong-"

I looked at him with renewed intent, and as I rose from my seat, I told him, with a shaky voice, "I do. One of us has to."

* * *

Meredith Fell had tried to implore Elena to see reason. Jeremy had died of extreme blood loss, and he had a broken neck. His muscles had tightened past the point of rigor mortis. I stopped listening at that point, and I left them, I couldn't hear any more. Elena fought back and whined that she was going to keep an eye on Jeremy, to make sure that he didn't go crazy like Ric did. She wasn't listening, but there was no way that I could listen for her, it was too damn hard.

Meredith asked Elena to release the body, to let her take Jeremy to a funeral home, and prepare him for a viewing so that we could all say goodbye to him. Elena answered her request by slamming the doctor into the wall, and screaming back at her. Jeremy wasn't dead. Stefan pulled her away.

Matt came to pay his respects to his friend, and had to battle through Elena's assurances that everything was going to be okay. We just needed to get Bonnie back here, and then she would fix him, she would bring him back.

* * *

 **Gilbert Kitchen - 21:15**

Bonnie arrived, with Damon, and a sketchy Hail Mary. Elena, Caroline, Matt and I were all sitting around the kitchen table, listening to Bonnie's plan. Ro the Ro-Bot activated, and I focused on really listening to what she was saying.

"It's called an Expression triangle. 3 massacres. 3 hot spots." Bonnie explained, "We are sitting on two already. I need to complete it for Silas."

 _Bonnie is going to murder 12 people to bring Jeremy back. Just like Hayley orchestrated the murder of those 12 hybrids. Jeremy is dead. Jeremy needs to be brought back to life._

Matt scoffed, in total disbelief, and said, "What? Bonnie, you can't kill 12 people."

"I know it sounds crazy, but it's the only way to get enough power." Bonnie insisted.

"To do what?" Caroline whined.

"I will drop the veil between this side, and the Other Side." Bonnie explained, "Once the veil is dropped, the Other Side doesn't exist anymore. There's nothing separating us. We're all just one."

"Bonnie, you are talking like a crazy person." Caroline implored her, "You are not killing 12 people, and you sure as hell can't invite every monster who has ever died back into this world!"

 _Bonnie is going to unleash Hell on Earth. That is what it takes to do the impossible, to bring Jeremy back from the dead. Jeremy is dead. Jeremy would not want this, but that's the price we pay, for Jeremy._

"Caroline, I think she knows that." Matt said.

While they all continued to argue, I kept looking at Elena, and wondered what the hell she was thinking. She was staring out straight ahead, blank, empty.

"I can do it." Bonnie insisted, "I have the power. We can bring everyone back- Jeremy, Alaric, Vicki."

 _Jeremy. Alaric. Vicki. We get them all back. Everything can go back to the way that it was. Aunt Jenna? She was a vampire when she died._

"Bonnie, stop it!" Caroline whined, "You can't just say these things."

"It's gonna be fine-" Bonnie scorned.

The phone rang, breaking Elena out of her reverie and ending the heated conversation over her.

"I'll get it." Elena muttered.

She rose from the table and answered the phone. Damon and Stefan returned inside the house, after having their own private chinwag outside.

"Jeremy can't come to the phone right now. He's not-" Elena said, and suddenly paused. She shook her head once and then she informed the person on the other end, "I'm sorry. He's dead."

She hung up the phone and she stormed out of the room. Everyone silently looked at each other. I hadn't seen Jeremy. I'd seen a tuft of brown hair. It wasn't real to me. It was easier to keep that wall up when I didn't have anything to block out, other than Stefan's sad eyes, and Caroline's maternal hovering. Elena's wall had come down, and smashed into mine as it fell.

* * *

"How?! How are you gonna help me? How? Just carry him down, please!" Elena bellowed and then thundered down the stairs. She looked around the room and asked us, "Where's Bonnie?"

"We told Matt to take her home." Stefan said, "We thought it'd be best."

"Caroline is keeping an eye on her...new-found murderous tendencies." I muttered.

"Okay." Elena said, and wiped her leaking nose, "I guess we're gonna have to do this the old-fashioned way."

"Do what?" I asked.

Elena turned to face Damon, who had appeared in the doorway, carrying Jeremy's body. She instructed him, "Put his body on the couch."

She scrambled her way through the kitchen, opening and slamming every cabinet and drawer. I stood up, in utter astonishment, backing away from the wrapped up body, and I asked her, "Elena? Elena, what are you doing?"

Elena triumphantly pulled a bottle of lighter fluid out from the cabinet under the sink and started squirting it all over the counters. She shook her head and said, "It's fine. Got it."

"What are you doing?" Stefan scorned.

Elena continued to squirt the lighter fluid everywhere with gay abandon, and coldly informed us, "We need a cover story, right? You think I didn't hear you guys talking earlier? Well, what are we gonna say? Animal attack? Tumbled down the stairs? No. We burn the house down with him inside of it."

She'd sauntered her way through to the living room and poured the bottle over the couch, and the curtains.

"Elena, stop it!" Stefan scorned, raising his voice.

"Why?" Elena shot back, "Because you want me to not be in denial? You want me to face the truth? This is the truth, Stefan! I don't want to live here anymore. I don't want these sketches!" She squirted the lighter fluid all over Jeremy's drawings and sketchbooks, and kicked over a stack of his supplies. She turned to the TV cabinet and declared, "I don't want this Xbox!" She chucked the empty lighter fluid bottle across the room and she scrambled through another cabinet, pulling out a liquor bottle. She huffed out, "Not gonna need this bourbon anymore. Alaric's not here to drink it, I mean, unless you guys are willing to bring back every supernatural creature on the Other Side to get him back." She turned to Damon and she stormed over to him, asking, "Would you? I know you want your drinking buddy back. Would you, Damon? Because I wouldn't! And I don't know, I mean, does that make me a bad person? I-I have no idea."

She sauntered over to Jeremy's dead body, pulled back the cover, and splashed the bourbon over him. I slapped the bottle out of her hands, sending it smashing to the floor, and then I saw it. I saw him. Cold. Pale. Dead. My-my brother. My first and forever best friend. My-my shared everything. I stopped breathing.

Elena pulled the Gilbert ring off of Jeremy's finger and tossed it over to Damon, declaring, "He's not gonna need that anymore."

"Elena, stop it!" I screamed at her, and felt Damon's arms pulling me back away from her; highly concerned at the very flammable person standing in a highly flammable room.

"Are you gonna help me or not?!" She screamed back at me, and gestured around to the soaked room, "HELP ME! Do this with me! Click your fingers. We can do this together!" She took a picture frame off the side table, the same one that Kol had fixated on, and asked me, "What else are we supposed to do with the body, Rosie? I mean, there's no-there's no room in the Gilbert family plot!" She threw the frame down on the ground, in blind rage, sending more glass shattering across the floor. She ranted, "Jenna and-and John took the last spots!" She grabbed the box of matches from the mantle and rapidly lit one.

"No, no, Elena." Stefan implored, "Stop!"

"This is our home!" I cried, with hot tears searing their way down my cheeks.

"There's nothing here for us anymore!" Elena screamed back at me, "We are never gonna get the smell of Jeremy's rotting body out of here! We are living in a mausoleum! Every inch of this house is filled with memories of the people that we love that have died- mom, dad, Jeremy, and Jenna and Alaric, John, even John. I mean, they're all dead. Everyone is dead. So, what am I supposed to- I mean, how am I gonna- I can't even- There's nothing left here-AAAH!"

Elena cried out as the flame burned all the way down the match into her hand. She dropped the match in shock, but Damon managed to flash before her and catch it before the entire house went up in flames...with us all standing inside it. Elena sobbed violently and emotionally crumbled before our very eyes. I felt it. I felt it all.

"Elena, I need you to calm down." Damon implored.

"No, no, no, I can't. I can't. I can't. I-" Elena wailed, and fell down to her knees. The immeasurable pain and grief was distorting her face. She grabbed at her own head and screamed out, "No. It hurts. It hurts. Just make it stop. Please make it stop. It hurts."

"Damon...Help her." Stefan said.

Damon crouched down next to Elena and pulled her to him as she sobbed and wailed out. She shuddered in his arms. Damon assured her, "I can help you. I want you to let me help you. I can help you."

"How?" Elena wailed.

"Turn it off." Damon said.

"What?" Stefan scorned, "No, no."

Suddenly, the trails of tears down my cheeks felt very cold. Damon held up a firm hand to stop his brother from intervening, and he told Elena, "Just turn it off, and everything will go away. That's what you have to do. It's what I want you to do. Just turn it off."

We watched Elena's tear-stained face turn utterly expressionless and still. The light left her eyes, as though something inside her had died.

* * *

Elena picked up the broken picture frame, the picture of her...and of her sister and her brother, all smiling together. She looked at it expressionlessly, and a last piece of the glass fell to the floor.

"Elena? Talk to me." I huffed out.

She presented the picture to me, and she asked, "Do you know these people? They are all dead. And it's my fault. It's all my fault. I-I killed them."

"Elena." I whispered, "It's not. None of this is on you."

Elena nodded, ominously, and she took the picture from my hands and put it down, neatly, where it had once stood. Still expressionless, she crossed the living room, passed Jeremy without so much as a glance, and she grabbed and lit another match, just as Damon and Stefan came back inside the house.

"Elena, don't do this." Damon implored, "We can find another cover story."

Elena shook her head once, and she declared, "This is the best one. No one'll ask questions."

"Maybe one or two." Damon whined, "Like are you a family full of arsonists?!"

"Look, if you burn down the house, it'll be gone." Stefan reminded her, "What if one day when this is all over, you want to come home again?"

Elena watched the flame trickling it's way down the match once more, and then she looked up at Stefan, with that blank face, and she told him, "I won't."

"Elena." I said, one last time, "Please don't do this...for me."

She looked at me, directly, and tipped the match out of her fingers; the floor immediately ignited. Elena lead us out, casually strolling out the front door. She and Damon turned to their left and continued on down the street, without taking one look back at the burning building. Stefan paused and looked back at the house, and at the girl who had stopped to see the flames dancing and building inside.

"Go." I whispered, as he came up behind me, "Please."

"No." He replied, and he took my hand into his, and said, "I'm not leaving either of you."


	52. I Was There, Or You Were There

**Elijah's Apartment**

Elijah's apartment looked out over the town square. It was modern, spacious, and dare I say...wildly grown-up. The closets were filled with tailored suits and pressed linens; the shelves were lined with an interesting collection of novella I'd chipped into; a classic drinks cart took pride of place in the open-plan living area. The wine bottles were mature and spoke French, and the landscapes in two of the beautiful paintings on the walls were very familiar to me; I'd walked through that garden, and the tall grass of that river bank, both times in a shared dream. Though I awoke every morning in that apartment alone, Elijah was distinctly all around me, and for some strange, undoubtedly silly reason, I drew comfort from that fact, and spent more and more nights there.

My cellphone started to jingle, but I didn't recognize the number.

"Rosanna? It's Hayley. Don't hang up!" She rattled out.

I didn't say anything. Call me curious, but I wanted to know how the hell she was faring.

"I have to be quick, I'm calling from a janky truck stop, and I'm down to my last quarters, and I really do need to keep moving." She informed me.

She sounded skittish, and exhausted, a far cry from the sass-pot I'd gotten to know.

"Oh. How's that? Made friends with all the wrong people?" I asked, sarcastically, "And royally screwed over all the best ones?"

"I am really sorry to hear about your brother, um, but I have some information that might help you."

"Do you know what information would have really helped us out back there? Hi. I'm Hayley, I'm about to stab you all in the back, get your loved ones killed, and side with the biggest ass-holes I can find!" I ranted into the phone.

She wasn't deterred, she took it, and then said, "Look, I am really sorry. I can explain everything to you, if you'll just meet up with me-"

"I don't owe you anything!" I barked back, "We both slept with hideously inappropriate men once upon a time, that doesn't make us kindred spirits!"

"I have made a deal with Klaus. I've traded my protection for Katherine Pierce's whereabouts!" Hayley shouted back, "And I'm stalling. I figured that information might be more valuable to you, considering what she's done to you."

"How the hell do you know where Katherine is?" I scorned "No. Wait. How the hell do you know Katherine at all?"

"I met her in New Orleans. I was looking for my real parents." Hayley said, "Katherine said that she could help me."

Had she? Did she know about the island that they were all going to? She knew Shane. Was she the missing link?

I scoffed, my hands shook with rage as I told her, "You're an idiot. Klaus will snap your neck the second he gets what he wants."

I hung up the phone and threw it on the bed.

* * *

 **Salvatore Boarding House**

I pulled up to the Salvatore House to what looked like a massive kegger. The grounds were full of drunken party-goers, spilling out of the open doors. I parked the car by the entrance, wanting to avoid anyone spewing on it. I walked up to the house, through a couple of jubilant welcomes, and had a red cup shoved in my hands. Inside was even more crowded, a massive party was in full swing, with dance music blaring throughout; the floor was vibrating from the towering speaker stacks. Elena was dancing on top of a table, pouring alcohol into someone's mouth below her...she was having a blast. Stefan and Caroline were dancing together, laughing and talking, until they saw my bemused face and made a beeline for me.

"Where have you been?" Caroline asked.

"I-I have a lead on Katherine." I told her, my eyes fixated on my sister.

Elena jumped down from the table, elegantly, and swaggered her way towards us, shoving party-goers out of her path as she did.

"Look who finally joined the party." She declared, sarcastically.

"The party." I huffed out.

"Sorry, for not inviting you, little sis." Elena said, nonchalantly, "You've been kind of a downer lately."

Stefan took a sharp intake of breath and braced himself. Caroline squeezed her eyes shut for a beat.

I scoffed and said, with a shaking voice, "No. My bad. Sorry for not dealing with the death of my twin brother quite as well as you are."

"Ugh." Elena sighed out, and rolled her eyes, looking to Caroline and Stefan for back up, "Again, with the waterworks."

"We can't all turn off the pain, Elena." I scorned back at her.

"I would feel bad for you, I'm sure, if I could." Elena informed me, "But, that would imply emotions, and we've already established those are useless."

"Come on, Elena." Caroline implored, "That's enough."

"You're right. It is. You should really leave, Ro, you are a total buzzkill." Elena determined, and then turned to Caroline and Stefan. With a wild smile, she said, "And you guys should get back on the floor, you look so good together. By all means, Care, just take him out for a spin. He could use it!"

Elena sauntered away, dancing her way back through the crowd. Whilst Caroline and Stefan exchanged awkward looks with each other, unable to address anything that Elena had said, I watched Sheriff Forbes walk inside the house. She had a conversation with Elena which quickly escalated into an altercation. Elena had her hands on the Sheriff. Liz reached for her gun, and Elena pinned her harshly against the wall. Caroline flashed over to them and pushed Elena away, hard.

"I'm fine." Liz assured her daughter, rubbing the back of her head.

Caroline growled and went for Elena but Stefan held her back

"Caroline, calm down." Stefan implored.

Caroline struggled against his hold, and whined, "Calm down? I'm gonna wring her skinny little neck!"

Elena took that as her cue, and she flashed out of the house with such speed that she knocked over a stack of cups, and sent them scattering across the ground.

I took a swig of whatever the hell was inside my red cup, and threw it over my shoulder. I turned to them both, and said, "You two got this, right?"

"Ro. Wait!" Caroline implored.

"What about the lead?" Stefan asked.

"Just call me when you get a minute." I said, and left them to it.

* * *

I got back inside my car and drove a little down the road, further away from the booming party, but I could still hear the bass faintly pounding away. I parked up and took out my phone. I texted Damon with the information that Hayley had sent after I unceremoniously hung up on her: _Vampire after Hayley? Guy named Will. She'd met him before, got a fake ID for her. Klaus bit him. Better find him fast._

I've always had my brother or my sister to lean on, and they've always had me; we are always in the background of each other's tough emotional memories.

When I was told that my parents had died, I fell down to the ground; and for that single, isolating, solitary moment, time froze around me. I didn't scream, or wail; I just fell down and then it all hit me, like stepping out in front of a speeding tanker truck. I slapped the ground and I shook my head and kept repeating 'no, no, no!' into Elena's arms as she held on to me. I was _there_ , and I remembered being there; I remembered my father's frantic struggle against my mother's seat belt; I couldn't push that aside; it was real; it hurt like hell, but the story added up.

There was a social worker, or something, whose face I can't conjure up to this day stood behind them, stood in the blurred background, she diagnosed me with shock, and worried about the long term effects of not emoting properly; I screamed back at her to leave me alone. I screamed expletives at her. Elena snapped back to the woman; was that enough emoting for her? HUH?

When Jenna died, I stole a couple of bottles of bourbon from the Mystic Grill and I drank myself into a 'shouting at grave-stones' stupor, however short lived said stupor may have been. Jeremy was there. I eventually caved and told Matt what I'd done, and he let me off with some kind words for Aunt Jenna.

When Alaric died, we were all there, with him, and then I sought comfort in a thousand year old original vampire, and well, he was no longer an option...at my own hand.

When I was told that Elena had died, I punched Jeremy, a lot, in the chest. I didn't spiral too far before Damon called and told us the...semi-good news.

And when Jeremy died...a large part of me died with him; it burned up, that night, along with the reconstructed memory of our childhood home. Stefan stood beside me, and we watched the crumbling darkening frame, until the fire trucks descended, and he urged me to leave with him. Jeremy wasn't there. Elena wasn't there. I was the last one standing, replaying Jeremy's voice, trying desperately to remember the last thing I'd said to him, but everything else was filtering through at once.

 _Don't be mad at her. And don't be such a bummer. Look, I'd wig out if anything happened to you, too. Big time._

 _I figured it was your turn to fall apart, and my turn to try and hold it together, for the both of us._

 _I was worried about you, worried about you waking up and...finding out. Figured you'd totally go off the deep end._

It was time to to leave this dark abandoned road, but...where to? I didn't have the option of running off to a summer camp right now. It was February. Circle back and drink myself stupid with Elena 2.0? Find another inappropriate bed partner? Can't punch Jeremy...Damon would be a good substitute. I must have been numb now. I was...half, from here on out. I didn't have the energy to run away this time.

Just as I was about to start up the car again, my phone jingled. It was Damon.

"Yeah?" I huffed out.

"You are about five minutes too late with that revelation, Rapunzel, as per." Damon informed me, "I know the guy. We go way back."

"Will you be able to get something out of him?" I asked him, fighting to hold back the tears that were still brewing.

"In a roundabout way." Damon said, and then asked, "What's with the tone? You holding in a sneeze or something?"

I scoffed and bit my cheek. I took a deep breath and said, "You should call Stefan. Elena's AWOL."

"Are you okay?" Damon asked.

"Yeah. I'm just going home." I said, and then a little depressed chuckle came out of me, "Well, no, actually I'm not doing that-that-that is gone, again. And _your house_ is packed with drunken teenagers and vomit, and broken stuff, and I'm driving away from that, so I guess...just call Stefan, Damon. Go get my sister."

* * *

 **Elijah's Apartment - 23:40**

I peered through the peephole, and opened the door, with what little energy remained in my bones.

"I'm _really_ not in the mood." I told her.

"Nice crib." Hayley declared, as she sauntered past me, into Elijah's apartment.

"What do you want?" I asked her, "You said your piece, whatever, you got your little nugget of redemption, now leave me the hell alone."

"I am going back to New Orleans with fresh intel." Hayley informed me, "The pack that my parents were from, it's there, somewhere, out in the Bayou."

"And?" I asked.

"Look. I know I messed up. I'm a completely selfish jerk. And-" Hayley said.

"-And you led Katherine to that island, the island she murdered my brother on." I scorned back.

"I didn't know that would happen." Hayley insisted.

"I could get that Katherine is manipulative, and evil and all, and maybe that bit is true...but you sent 12 of your friends to the slaughter, and somehow Tyler ended up paying the price, so your sudden guilty conscience over my brother's death is noted, but holds absolutely no weight." I scorned.

"Shane said they would all come back. Silas would bring them back!" Hayley explained, "I have had a lifetime of searching and yearning for a family. So, I...I can imagine how horrible it is to lose them."

"No." I scoffed, "You can't."

"I was going to ask if you wanted to get away from all of this. If you wanted to come with me. It could be just like old times. We can Thelma and Louise our way all across the south." Hayley suggested.

"Even if I didn't completely hate your guts...I can't leave Elena." I replied.

Hayley scoffed and said, "That's not Elena. Elena's checked out for the foreseeable future. Elena turned off her humanity and left you to deal with this all alone."

"Don't!" I barked over her, "I am well aware. And I don't blame her one bit. If I could have done the same thing, if I could turn off this constant ache, I would!"

Hayley shook her head, emphatically, and she said, "No, you wouldn't. You would stick around and take care of everyone else before yourself, and I can rattle off a whole list of times that you've done that, with me alone." She reached into her pocket and handed over a scrunched up piece of paper, and said, "Here is my new cell number, if you change your mind, at any time, you call me."


	53. A Long Day, A Long Time Coming

**Willoughby Main Street - The Sunshine Diner**

This was a long day, and it was a long time coming. Stefan and I had rescued Damon after Elena and Rebekah had stolen his car and abandoned him back in New York City. We managed to track down his beloved car, with the help of Sheriff Forbes. It was dumped on the side of the interstate, out of gas. We followed the trail, sightings of their next stolen car, this time from a family of tourists. That car was spotted just outside of Willoughby, the creamed corn capital of Pennsylvania.

It was easy enough to find them from there, Katherine and Rebekah were sat inside the only open establishment on the Main Street. A lot of time was wasted in that diner, Rebekah and Katherine bickered back and forth, a hand was crushed, and Damon got a few verbal jabs in, but we were still none-the-wiser as to where my sister was.

"I can give you a hint. Start by looking at the town morgue. She's probably dead." Katherine suggested, and was met by a chorus of unimpressed faces, waiting for her to elaborate. She rolled her eyes and told us, "She went to meet up with a friend of mine. You may know him-an Original brother, impeccable taste."

Rebekah, looking a little distraught, asked, "Elijah?"

"Elijah's here?" Damon groaned.

"Well, you sort of have to question Elijah's impeccable taste if he's friends with you." Stefan stated.

I scoffed in response.

"Oh, when I say friend, I mean _friend_." Katherine sang.

Damon, Rebekah and I all groaned in disgust. I told myself in that moment that my disgust solely came from the fact that someone I thought was on my side was sleeping with the cretin that had handed my brother over to Silas; and maybe from that smug untouchable smirk she had plastered all over her face. Had Elena not needed nor wanted the cure, had she been there with us, safe, the quietly quaint Sunshine Diner would have been on the 6 O'clock news that night.

"It probably took him about ten seconds to realise that she wasn't me, at which point he probably yanked her heart right out of her chest." Katherine determined.

"He wouldn't do that." I said, tersely.

Katherine's attention shot to me and she asked. smugly, "How are you so sure, _Little Girl_?"

"Where are they?" Stefan asked her, firmly, but she wouldn't give it up. He turned to Rebekah and said, "Rebekah, you do realise if something should happen to Elena, you have no chance of finding the cure, right?

"Fine." Rebekah sighed, and said, "They were supposed to meet at the gazebo by the park."

Stefan rose from the table, and said, "I'll go talk to Elijah."

"You deal with Elijah." Rebekah said, "Katherine will take us to the cure."

"No, she won't." Katherine scoffed, loudly, "The cure is my one chance to win my freedom back from Klaus."

"You're gonna broker a deal with Klaus?" Damon laughed.

"No." I said, leaning forward a little to enjoy every inch of her reaction, "She'll have Elijah broker the deal for her. That's why you need your little friend, isn't it, _Old Lady_?"

"Some things never change, Katherine." Stefan said, with a roll of the eye.

"Nope." Damon chuckled.

"Fine." Katherine huffed out and barked to Rebekah, "Move. You have to follow me."

Stefan turned to me, and asked, "You coming?"

"I'm good." I rasped, and followed Damon out of the diner.

* * *

 **Katherine's House (allegedly)**

Damon had already warned Katherine before we'd made it through the threshold: No sudden moves. No tricks either. No Katherine-ing. Katherine, of course, took none of that on board. She sashayed around her house, and finally opened up a hidden safe behind her bookcase. She gasped with all the conviction of a black and white silent film star. Her cure, it was there, and now...it was gone! A few tussles, more back and forth, and some snide remarks later, it was deduced it had to be somewhere in this old lady house.

"You gotta get in the ride head space, Barbarino." Damon suggested to me, "If you were a paranoid, distrustful sociopath, where would you keep your most prized possession?"

Katherine chuckled, "Oh. This should be fun."

I narrated my search around the living room for our hostage, "Okay. I'd want it to be close, but not on me. Accessible but not obvious. I'd want to keep it safe, but not so safe that it'd be too difficult to grab and run." I stopped and pointed at her fish tank, and posed, "Well, that is a fancy little treasure chest-in a tank with no fish."

I glanced back at Katherine, but she said nothing. Damon sauntered over to the fish tank, gleefully, and said, "I think I'm gonna have to check that out."

He dipped his hand into the water and was immediately burned.

"Aah! Gah! Vervain water. Looks like we have a winner." Damon huffed, "Barbs, if you would be so kind."

I scooped out the chest. Katherine flashed across the room, and slammed me into the bookcase. She shoved Damon's head down into the vervain water, and then threw him across the room. Damon writhed around in pain. Katherine bolted for the door but Rebekah appeared directly in front of her.

"Give it to me or you're dead." Rebekah seethed.

"You're gonna kill me anyway." Katherine scorned back, "So, what's more important to you, huh? Killing me or getting the cure?"

Katherine threw a small pill-shaped object up into the air behind her, and dashed out of the front door. Rebekah didn't care. She had chosen long before that fraction of a second and she ran to catch it.

Damon growled, "Look, Rebekah...Don't even think about it."

Rebekah stood up, in complete unshakable awe that she finally held her long-sought-after cure in her own hands. I rose up from the shattered bookcase, and cricked my neck and jostled my agonized shoulder, checking I still could.

Damon groaned out, "Let's just talk about this, like the two rational vampires that we are. Rebekah?"

Rebekah, still staring at the mystical object propped between her fingertips, said, "Oh, give it a rest. Me taking this cure is the best thing that'll ever happen to you."

"Don't do anything stupid." Damon begged.

"Admit it!" Rebekah scoffed, "You don't want Human-Elena running back to Stefan whilst you're left out in the cold again. Go on, Damon. Tell me why you want Elena to have the cure."

Damon said absolutely nothing; he just lay there, flopped down on the floor, his skin sizzling and healing over in the silence.

"Damon!" I scorned at him.

Rebekah smiled, and said, "That's what I thought."

* * *

 **The Sunshine Diner**

It wasn't the cure. It was a concentrated dose of Vervain; she was knocked out for all of two minutes, and then a letter opener sent hurtling towards her face confirmed that her reflexes were still far from human. It was all still to play for, right? There was still a chance for Elena? Not quite.

"Sit anywhere you'd like." Jolene the waitress sang chirpily to the Salvatore brothers as they entered the Sunshine Diner for the final time.

Damon and Stefan slid into the booth and each sat beside a Gilbert sister. I was sat opposite Elena, picking apart the bread roll that accompanied the soup of the day, which sat full, and ice cold before me.

"You all right?" Stefan asked, his gaze drifting between Elena and I.

Elena looked up at them both, but said nothing; I figured this cool calculating look had to be an ass-hole doppelganger trait.

"What's up with the silent treatment?" Damon scoffed, "You're the one that texted us and wanted to meet up."

"Wait for it." I said, darkly.

"You know I don't want the cure." Elena announced to them, "You need to know that I never will and I'm done talking about it. So...will you accept that and let me be who I am, or not?"

Damon and Stefan exchanged a confused look between them.

"Yeah...no." Damon scorned.

"Elena, this isn't you." Stefan implored.

"It is now." Elena said, and casually took a sip of her coffee, "And you two really need to accept it, like Rosanna finally has. If you don't accept it, there will be consequences."

"What the hell does that mean?" Damon scorned at me.

"Listen, I was in the exact same situation that you're in right now." Stefan said, "My emotions were off. I wasn't me. And you refused to accept that. You didn't give up on me. You didn't stop until you pulled me back."

Elena set down her mug at the side of the booth, which cued the return of happy, smiley Jolene.

"Let me just top that off for you." Jolene said, kindly.

Elena smiled a twisted fake smile at her, and said, "Thanks."

She flashed out of her seat and snapped Jolene's neck. The sound of the snap pierced my heart. Her body slumped to the floor; the pitcher of coffee shattered and splattered everywhere.

"Oh!" Damon huffed out, shocked at her sudden display of violence.

"Like I said, consequences." Elena explained, coolly, "That's one body you're responsible for. If you keep trying to fix me, there'll be a second, a twentieth, and a hundredth. It's your choice."

She smiled at us all, took in our stunned expressions, and then picked up her purse, casually, and sauntered out of the diner.

Damon and Stefan were fixated on the dead body beside our table. Damon sighed and eventually looked over at his brother. He asked him, "You still ready to ride off into the sunset?"

"I'm leaving." I muttered, and rose from the table.

"Yeah. Let's get out of here." Stefan said, glancing around at the mercifully empty diner.

"No." I said, and I stopped them both from following me, "I...can't watch her do this. I can't follow her trail of bodies for god knows how long and cling to a teeny tiny thread of hope that she's gonna come back."

"We are going to get her back." Stefan determined.

"Yeah." I huffed out, "Yeah, maybe you are...You know, I am always _this close_ to burning down everything around me at any given moment...and yeah, my twin brother being murdered was a freaking hum-dinger. But I am _still here_...for her! And she couldn't do that for me. So, I can't do this. I just don't have it in me, anymore."

* * *

 **Elijah's Apartment - 23:05**

I thought I would be done crying by then, I figured I'd be empty. I certainly felt empty. Numb. The whole drive back, in the car that Damon had compelled away for me, I was numb. Hot tears had strewn their way south from tender lashes and wove their way down to the very ridge of my jaw. Plop. To my chest. To the seat of the car. Down my neck. They left me.

I grew more and more frustrated as I paced around the apartment, throwing random things into a bag with varied force. I turned at the uncertain sound, and froze instantly upon seeing Elijah stood in the open doorway.

"Elijah." I huffed out.

Elijah entered his own apartment, tentatively, and closed the door behind him. He said, " I...was standing outside the charred remains of your family home."

Once his words broke the stinging silence in the room, I allowed myself to believe it. He was really there, stood before me. I turned away from him, and I wiped my eyes with hands buried inside sweater sleeves, and whispered, "Yeah. Wasn't me this time."

"I should have answered that call." Elijah stated as he approached me, and offered his pocket square to me, "A mistake I regret deeply."

I took it, hesitantly, and said, "I should have let it ring for more than two seconds."

Elijah released a small chuckle, and then he said, "I was unkind last we spoke."

My mind was clouded and clogged up with enough sadness, and grief, I didn't particularly want to hash this one out. My heart was shattered too fine, I couldn't tell which piece belonged to that night.

"Did you give the cure to Klaus?" I asked him, "Is that why you're standing outside my door? You need to tell me that face to face?"

"Well, there was no door to stand before." He joked, and said, "And, no. It is still in my possession. I intend to give the cure to the person who would benefit from it most."

"And, who did you determine that to be?" I asked him.

Elijah took a beat, and then explained, "Originally, I had it earmarked for Katerina's deal, with Klaus, as I'm sure you are aware, to buy her freedom. And then, Rebekah spoke up. I challenged her to live as a human for an entire day, to prove that her desire is not a mere whim, to prove that she truly understands what she is giving up."

"It comes up almost every time I've spoken to her." I told him, "It's no whim."

"I considered that speaking with you might change my mind one final time, hence the hour." Elijah said, "I worried my call would wake you, but here I see our conversation merely interrupts your...fleeing town?"

"I'm not fleeing." I replied, tersely.

"I'm so very sorry to hear about your brother." He said, "And your sister's...absence."

"Thank you." I rasped.

"May I ask where you are headed?"

"I'm helping out a friend of mine. Friend...now in the loosest of terms." I explained, with a heavy heart, "She needs help finding her family. And I can't stay in Mystic Falls because it feels as though I've completely lost mine." My voice wavered at the end but I recovered it, and stuffed it all down, and I told him, "But...Stefan and Damon and Caroline...they are ever-hopeful that Elena will come back to us, so she's left in good hands."

"Does a small part of you not share that hope?" Elijah asked.

I huffed out a lot of pent up emotion, and I said, "Of course. But I'm tired of feeling this way. It's like a wound that can't close over."

Elijah took the lead, and stood tall before me. His hands caressed my upper arms, and coaxed my eyes to focus solely on his as he spoke, "You need to heal. You need to think only of yourself for what I suspect is the first time. Your sister loves you, Rosanna, it is only the curse of a life she never wanted that grips her, and the sheer magnitude in which she loves you and Jeremy that has brought her to this place. It will end. She will come back to you, and you must make sure that there is something to come back to. Allow yourself to heal."

I allowed something of a smile to slip through the cracks, and I told him, "I...uh, I missed you. I could've done with the whole swooping in at the last minute thing. We had a good routine going."

"As I, you." He said, his eyes darting between mine, "You are not alone, Rosanna. If I may be so bold, consider that SOS radar back on?"

"You...don't have to do that." I said.

"No. I don't." Elijah replied, and stepped back, "Go on this adventure of yours, safe in the knowledge that you are not alone."

"Mm-hmm." I hummed.

"Take care of yourself." He said, and disappeared out of the apartment.


	54. I'm Obsessed With The Gumbo

**Bar In New Orleans**

Hayley and I were hanging out at a largely deserted bar, at midday, enjoying yet another bowl of the house gumbo.

"You know, I'm starting to forget what literally any other food tastes like." I mused.

Hayley sat back in her chair, with a smirk, and noted, "Your sister's emotions are back on. Your brother's reappeared in the land of the living. You're supposedly all put back together again, and you officially have no more excuses to be avoiding your life and following me around every swampy corner of the South."

She had a point. Every single event that had pushed me out of Mystic Falls had somehow found itself right side up. Jeremy was back. Elena was back. The band was back together, for all intents and purposes...just, minus me. Our work down here wasn't done, it was nowhere near done. Okay, we'd had a blast this summer, exploring new towns, following flimsy leads, and dancing until we hit the deck, but there was a point to us being here, and we weren't any closer to finding Hayley's family. I couldn't leave, not mid-game.

"Hmm. Right." I sighed, lightly, and reminded her, "You don't get gumbo like this in Virginia though."

"Right." Hayley chuckled.

Jane-Anne, our favourite snoopy bartender, made her way over to us, and noted, "Third time in here this week."

"I'm _obsessed_ with the gumbo, Jane-Anne." Hayley replied, and I snorted at her.

"You know, ladies in the 9th ward say my sister, Sophie, bleeds a piece of her soul into every dish." Jane-Anne informed us, gesturing over to her sister, who was busy working away on the other side of the restaurant.

I nodded, looked intently for some glimmer of a joke there, and eventually rasped, "Huh. Gnarly."

"I asked around the Quarter about my family." Hayley informed her.

"And?" She asked.

"Nothing. Zero." Hayley sighed, and told her, "I can't find a single person who remembers them."

"Because, Hayley, people like you were run out of here years ago." Jane-Anne replied, matter-of-factly.

Hayley's ears prickled, and she asked, "What do you mean, people like me?"

Jane-Anne walked out from behind the bar to join us, and speak to us more discretely. Her manoeuvre caught her sister's attention, she stopped chopping and watched her closely. Jane-Anne set down an old road map on the bar and she explained, "In the bayou, they call the werewolves 'Roux-Ga-Roux'." She circled a point on the map with the Biro stowed away in her apron, and she warned us, "You head out there, you'll find what you're looking for. But, be careful. It's the last place you'd ever want to go."

"Smashing." I muttered under my breath.

* * *

 **The Bayou - The Arse End Of Nowhere**

I stopped the car bang in the middle of the boggy dirt track just as Hayley had insisted and joined her in surveying the crumpled map.

"You said _right_ at the mouldy tree stump." I reminded her.

Hayley groaned in frustration, and shot back, "I thought that was the _right_ right. It isn't exactly clear, this all looks the same to me!"

"There's like one road, if you can even call this a road." I replied, "It can't be that hard to just...stay on it."

"There should have been a fork! Look. The fork is early on. Look at this." Hayley insisted, "Maybe we came in the wrong way?"

Just as Hayley motioned to hand over the map, it began to smoulder and then suddenly, burst into flames.

"What the...?" Hayley uttered and then screamed, "OH! JESUS!"

She tossed the flaming paper out of the window, and it splatted into the swampy trail beside the road. Her scowling face snapped back to look at mine.

"Was that you?!" She barked.

"Are you serious?!" I shot back, "You think I want to be lost in Alligator Soup all night?"

Hayley huffed, a little in frustration and uncertainty, but mostly in exhaustion, and then she shook her head and suggested, "Let's just go. We're losing the light. We'll come back tomorrow. This was a stupid idea."

"Not your finest." I muttered, and then checked myself, and told her, "I get it. It's the best lead we've had in weeks. We'll hit it hard tomorrow."

I went to put the car into reverse, and trundle down all the way back to a better spot to turn. However, the car did not respond kindly, and then began producing smoke in a similar fashion to our crummy map. I side-eyed Hayley, and for the first time that night, in the swampy horror-movie-set surroundings of the Bayou, I began to feel a little afraid.

"Are you kidding me?" Hayley muttered, and got out of the car first.

I followed her lead and popped the smoking hood. I covered my mouth and coughed a little at the sudden rush of fumes.

"You know, I'm starting to think that Creepy Gumbo Lady isn't the Good Samaritan she's making herself out to be." I determined, after assessing the damage and poking around the busted car.

"Is there nothing you can do?" Hayley asked.

I stood up straight, and declared, "Oh wait. Let me just tap into all of that repressed mechanic knowledge I have." I closed my eyes and pressed my temples, imploring my friend, "One moment, please."

"I will call for a tow." Hayley uttered and got out her cell.

I glared back at her, as she dialled the number and requested a tow service. Right on trend, Hayley's phone suddenly produced an ear-piercing shrieking noise. She threw her phone away, and she crumpled up and slammed her hands on to her head, screaming out in agony.

"HAYLEY?" I bellowed and tried to get over to her but I was sharply smacked with the same pain. I screamed out, "AHHH!"

My legs gave way, and I couldn't keep my eyes open for more than a second. Shadowy figures emerged from the trees. A lot of them. Chanting, I think, over the piercing ringing. Someone caught Hayley as she passed out. I don't know if any of our attackers were kind enough to do the same for me. It was lights out before I hit the deck.

* * *

 **Lafayette Cemetery - 3 Days Later**

One of the witches had roughly seized my arm, yanked me up to my feet and shoved me down another creepy ass corridor. He said there was someone who wished to see me. He told me to wait inside one of the burial vaults. It was lit by numerous candles, spread out across the walls and along the floors; it was quite weirdly beautiful. Oh, in case you were wondering, judging by the dried mud splattered all down my side when I awoke, no, I had not been caught before I KO-ed back there.

The door opened abruptly, and the witch returned with my mystery guest.

My heart just about leapt out of my chest and I collided with him. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him into me. He asked me if I was hurt, and I shook my head inside his embrace.

Elijah turned to the witch as we parted, and he requested, "Give us a moment, please."

The witch obliged and Elijah beckoned me over to the bench. Oh, okay, this wasn't an 'I'm busting you out of here' chat.

"Forgive my candour, but, why do you remain here?" Elijah asked, simply, "How are they holding you against your will?"

"Neither of us can leave the cemetery gates without slamming into an invisible wall AND they have a little no-magic filter going on here too, so...I'm completely useless. Hence, thinking happy thoughts of you." I told him.

Elijah smirked, and explained, "It was the sudden _radio silence_ that concerned me."

I smiled back at him, and kind of liked the fact that he was using my terms for our weird connection now. I sighed, and asked, "Now it's your turn to forgive me shooting straight to the point. Why aren't we busting out of here?"

"It's complex. Sophie tells me that the witches have a vampire problem, and they require help. I saw it firsthand. Marcel has an army backing him." He explained, "They want Klaus and I to aid them."

"And, we're the bait? To get you to help them?" I asked him.

Elijah nodded, and said, "Allegedly, Klaus is the father of your friend's unborn child. Do you believe that?"

"Hayley hasn't always been forthright with the truth, but she has never lied to me." I replied, "I don't understand how it happened, my skin is still crawling at the thought, but I do believe her. Do you think that it's possible?"

"Come here." Elijah rasped, and he moved closer to me along the stone bench. He held his hands up to my temple, and said, "If I may?"

"May? May what?" I asked, and recoiled, looking at his hands.

"Relax." He rasped and explained, "If you open your mind to me, I can show you my brother's story. It might explain better how this is all possible."

He waited for my nod of consent and then he placed his hands on me. He told me to close my eyes and to not engage with my base instinct to fight him off, to block him out. Something of a smart reply got caught in my throat; I could probably do no such thing, even if I wanted to.

 _In the beginning, our family was human... A thousand years ago, now._ I saw Elijah and Klaus sword-fighting, dressed in real old-timey clothes. They joked around. They laughed. They were so happy. Elijah's hair was long, and braided. I almost didn't recognise him at first. Rebekah laughed and hurried a smaller boy along with her.

 _Although our mother dabbled in the dark arts, we were actually just a family trying to survive in a time when it was quite difficult to do so. And, for better or worse, we were happy. That is, however, until one night, our youngest brother was killed by our village's greatest threat._ Klaus materialised again, this time carrying the ravaged body of young boy. It was horrifying to see, first-hand. He cried out for his mother.

 _Men that could transform themselves into wolves during the full moon. Our family was devastated, none more than Niklaus. Desperate to protect the rest of us, our father forced our mother to call upon her black magic in order to make us stronger._ Mikael, their father, held the bleeding arm of a human out in front of Rebekah. She was completely broken, terrified, and sobbing her heart out. Mikael barked in her face, and forced the woman's arm into her mouth.

 _Thus, the first vampires were born. But with this speed, this strength, this immortality, came a terrible hunger. No one felt this hunger more than Niklaus._ I saw Klaus attack a human, drain their blood and toss their body down, dead; a scene I was all too familiar with.

 _When he killed for the first time, we knew what he truly was_. Klaus turned into a wolf right before my eyes. He screamed out as his bones started cracking. Mikael and Elijah came running through the forest, calling out his name. Klaus screamed out in agony, in sheer terror of what was happening to him. Elijah tried to run to his brother, but he couldn't; his father held him back, fiercely. Klaus cried out in pain. Mikael condemned the boy as a beast, an abomination.

 _He wasn't just a vampire._ Elijah released his hold over me, and we came back into the vault. I wondered at first whether it was draining for him to perform this trick, but he didn't look any different, only perplexed; that couldn't be the end of his tale, he was second-guessing his decision to show me all of these private memories.

"He was _also_ a werewolf." I said, finishing his sentiment, urging him to continue, "That's how the werewolf curse works. It isn't activated until you take a life."

"Niklaus was the result of an indiscretion our mother had hidden from us all." Elijah explained, "An affair, with a werewolf like your friend, Hayley. Infuriated by this betrayal, my father forced our mother to cast a spell that would suppress Klaus's werewolf side, denying him any connection with his true self."

Elijah's voice had grown more monotonous as he proceeded, lacking his usual flair; he didn't want to show me the next part. I took his hands in mine, and I brought them back to me. He relented, and he showed me. I saw Esther, standing in front of a fire, in the dead of night, casting a spell. I saw Mikael bind Klaus to a wooden cross, urging Elijah to hold his brother down. Klaus begged Elijah to help him. Elijah pulled away, bringing us back to the vault once more, and then looked away. His gaze returned to me after he regained his composure; he was still clearly harbouring a deep regret for his actions, a thousand years later.

"Your dad was a dick." I huffed out.

Elijah chuckled, and he said, "I cannot excuse Klaus' behaviour, but you must understand, when our father hunted him, hunted us, for centuries, every time we found a moment of happiness, we were forced to flee." Elijah rose from the bench as he spoke and gestured around, emphatically, "Even here, in New Orleans, where we were happiest of all. Not long after Niklaus broke the spell which prevented him from becoming a hybrid, he defeated our father. I thought this would make him happy." Elijah paused, and realised that I turned away from him a little. Of course, I was familiar with his endeavour, at great cost to my own family. He shook his head, and he admitted, "He was angrier than ever. I wonder if perhaps this baby might be a way for my brother to find happiness. A way to save him from himself."

Sophie suddenly entered the vault, and said, "I'm glad you feel that way, because we need your help."

Elijah asked as he sauntered over to Sophie, placing himself between us, "What, precisely, is it that you want and what does it have to do with these young women?"

"We want to run Marcel and his vampires out of town. Klaus is the key." Sophie explained, "Everything Marcel knows about being a vampire, he learned from Klaus. Marcel trusts him, looks up to him, and he won't see the betrayal coming."

"Yes, well, as I'm sure you're aware, my brother Niklaus doesn't like to be told what to do." Elijah said.

"That's why I brought you here. Marcel drove the werewolves out of town decades ago. Do you really think he's going to welcome a hybrid baby to the neighborhood? Convince Klaus to help us, and no one has to know about the newest member of the Original family." Sophie declared.

"That sounds remarkably like blackmail." Elijah noted.

"Like I said, I'm desperate." Sophie said.

"Well, then, I have my work cut out for me, don't I?" Elijah said, charmingly. He whispered to Sophie as he left the vault, "Touch a hair on that girl's head and the punishment I dole out shall be so grave, Marcel will comparatively look like the Easter Bunny."


	55. Blood Bags, or Dust, or Tea

**Lafayette Cemetery**

Elijah had succeeded in bringing Klaus back to the cemetery, and bringing him up to speed on his impending journey into fatherhood.

"No. It's impossible." Klaus scorned back, "Vampires cannot procreate."

"But werewolves can." Sophie shot back, and explained, "Magic made you a vampire, but you were born a werewolf. You're the Original hybrid, the first of your kind, and this pregnancy is one of nature's loopholes."

Klaus fought for composure and control but turned sharply towards Hayley and shouted at her, "You've been with someone else, admit it!"

I stepped in front of Hayley, and Elijah pushed his brother back, his sharp derisive gaze demanding civility.

Hayley scoffed, and barked back at him, "Hey, I've spent days held captive in a freaking alligator bayou because they think that I'm carrying some magical miracle baby. Don't you think I would've fessed up if it wasn't yours?"

"My sister gave her life to perform the spell she needed to confirm this pregnancy. Because of Jane-Anne's sacrifice, the lives of this girl and her baby are now controlled by us. We can keep them safe, or we can kill them." Sophie said.

I took a quick moment to glance about for a quick round up of the reactions from _our_ team, the working title of which is _Team Not-A-Twisted-Selfish-Witch_ and saw that the jump to murder was also news to them.

Sophie then made her threat quite literally, "If you don't help us take down Marcel, so help me, Hayley won't live long enough to see her first maternity dress."

"Wait, what?" Hayley scorned.

"Enough of this." Elijah said, "If you want Marcel dead, he's dead. I'll do it myself."

"No. We can't, not yet." Sophie said, "We have a clear plan that we need to follow, and there are rules."

Elijah braced himself for the reaction of his brother. It were as if the mere five letter word were a deeply-ingrained, well-exposed trigger. Klaus, who had turned away from Sophie's rabbiting on, turned ever so slowly to face her, his anger barely restrained and his voice frighteningly quiet.

"How dare you command me…" Klaus said, and then bellowed, "-threaten me, with what you wrongfully perceive to be my weaknesses! This is a pathetic deception. I won't hear any more lies."

Klaus motioned to storm out.

"Niklaus!" Elijah bellowed over his brother and implored him to listen.

Klaus turned to Hayley, and I could only assume from his deep fixation, that he had focused in on a small but rapid heartbeat. Klaus listened in wonderment for a moment longer, then he met Hayley's eyes, and subsequently closed himself off for good. He turned back to his brother, and rasped, coldly, "Kill her and the baby. What do I care?"

Klaus stormed out of the mausoleum, which plunged the gathering into a somewhat awkward silence.

"Screw this. I'm out of here!" Hayley groaned at me, "Let's go."

She turned right into a wall of witches, and reluctantly turned back. Oh yes, our situation had not changed.

"What makes you think you can control the hybrid?" Agnes asked Sophie, in disgust.

"She can't." Elijah declared, "I'm not entirely certain that I can, either. But now that your coven has drawn his ire, I have a question: What prevents my brother from murdering you instead of cooperating?"

Sophie took a needle from the table, she showed it to the Original and then she plunged the needle into her hand. Hayley and I yelped out in unison, "Ow!"

Elijah went to me, and took my hand into his. There was a drop of blood on my hand, exactly at the same point where Sophie had hurt herself. Hayley's, too.

"What the hell!?" Hayley whined.

"The spell my sister performed, the one that got her killed? It didn't just confirm the pregnancy. It was a trinity life-linking spell. It linked the three of us together." Sophie explained, "So anything that happens to me, happens to both of them. 3 extra lives are now in my hands."

I cleared my throat, and asked the crowded room, "Not to take the focus too far away from holding a baby hostage, but what the hell did _I_ ever do to you?!"

"It's not personal." Sophie shot back, "We have to cover all bases. You are of _his_ element, he's sired of your blood! Klaus may not care about his own child, but that threat made it very clear what she means to you." She turned to Elijah and declared, "If you walk away from this, Elijah, you lose the baby and you lose your girl. If I have to hurt her, or worse, to ensure that I have your attention, I will."

Elijah looked slightly amused. He stepped towards her, and said, "You would dare threaten an Original?"

"I have nothing to lose." Sophie seethed. The grin had all but disappeared from Elijah's face, and she determined, "You have until midnight to get Klaus to change his mind."

* * *

"What was the threat?" Hayley whispered to me.

"Oh, you mean the threat that got me lumped into this crap too?" I shot back, "I have no idea."

"Come on now, less of the 'tude. I'm just trying to make final hour small talk here, you know, before we both die, for love and...god, tequila?" Hayley laughed, "Is that really what I'm dying for here?"

I snorted in response.

"No one has to die." Sabine said.

"And, no one was talking to you." Hayley replied, shortly.

I cleared my throat and asked her, "Hey. What was that back there about attitude?"

"If I touch a single hair on your head? The punishment that Elijah doles out will be so grave that comparatively, Marcel will look like the Easter Bunny." Sophie informed us, and then sauntered away.

"It's a little wordy." Hayley determined with a pensive nod, "But I like it. Poignant. Memorable. Clear intent. God, I slept with the wrong brother."

The church bell started tolling, signalling midnight. Hayley's shoulders bunched at the sudden hollow sound, and then she looked over at me, and for the first time in a long while, I saw her look a little frightened. I brushed her arm, and gave her a knowing look back, a look which assured her that we were going to be absolutely fine.

"His time is up." Agnes stated.

I took the heavy broken piece of metal I'd found under the bench we'd grown so acquainted with, out of my back pocket and into my hand. I tossed it up into the air once, judging the weight, and then I lobbed it hard at the guy in the corner with his back to us. The guy I had clocked as the anchor to the barrier, the one who constantly disappeared and reappeared, subtly chanted and muttered around us, and only us. He groaned out and collapsed to the floor, knocked clean out. The witches prattled and scattered into a furor.

"Seriously, take one more step towards her." I scorned and finally summoned long-overdue flames back into the palms of my hands. They tickled with delight. I glared back at Agnes, and goaded her, "See what happens."

"NO!" Sabine gasped out, in horror, and started for me, "Do not perform such magic here! PLEASE. _We_ will be the ones to suffer the repercussions."

"Oh, my bad!" I laughed at her, heartily, "You actually think I give a crap?"

"What're you gonna do now, Sophie?" Agnes asked, frantically.

"I'm gonna do what I said I was gonna do." Sophie stated.

"You will kill yourself?" Sabine asked, incredulously, and gestured back at me, "Spill angelic blood on hallowed ground?! Are you insane?!"

"Are we doing this or what?" I growled at them.

"Klaus does not care about the child!" Agnes spat back at her leader.

Elijah appeared suddenly in the doorway, and declared, "I do."

He entered the mausoleum, carrying a body wrapped up in cloth, and he gave me a sharp nod, signalling that it was time I closed my palms. I did so, begrudgingly, quite disappointed that we were approaching our fourth day in captivity and we weren't gonna OK Corral it down here.

Elijah explained to the witches, "I bring proof of my intent to help you: the body of your fallen friend, which I procured from Marcel himself."

"Jane-Anne." Sophie rasped and fell down to her knees beside her sister.

"May she be granted peace." Elijah said as the body was handed over, "Klaus will agree to your terms. I just need a little more time."

"You had your time." Agnes declared, "It's passed."

"Shut up, Agnes." Sabine said.

"For now, accept the deal." Elijah said, "No harm will come to the child, or Klaus will kill you all. And I will help him. Ladies? Shall we?"

* * *

 **Mikaelson Mansion - Reception Room**

Hayley and I were suddenly the residents of a huge, palatial white house, and were encouraged to go on ahead and explore every corner of our new home. Hayley roughly pulled a dust sheet off a chaise, causing us both to cough and splutter violently, and then giggle. Hayley gestured subtly over to the man who had just entered the house and she gave me a little smirk as she declared that she was going to go check out the kitchen.

"Are you alright?" Elijah asked, having clearly heard our coughing fits.

I nodded, and laughed, "Just dust. This place is ancient."

Elijah wiped a smattering of dust from my cheek, and he said, "Yes, it should serve our purposes. It's a sanctuary from our business in the Quarter. Right now, Hayley is the most important person in this family. She needs a good home. The child will never see harm, nor her mother, and of that, I give you my word."

He was sincere, although I pondered what insincerity would look like on Elijah Mikaelson. I nodded.

"Something on your mind?" Elijah asked.

"Was Sophie talking total gumbo back there?" I asked him, "You're _sired_ to me? But...you asked me to stand still and wait for you, to talk, back at the werewolf infiltration thing, way back when. And...I did."

"I remember." Elijah said.

"So... _you_ can't be, right?" I pondered, "It sounds more like I was."

"You were...afraid." Elijah suggested, "Raised on tales of the big bad Originals. You made a choice to listen to me."

"But...then I screamed at you and pushed you away for like...half a year." I said.

"5 months. Give or take." Elijah corrected, with a small smile.

"I...made you do that?" I asked him.

"No." He said, honestly, "It was a desire for you to be freed from the chaos and pain that continually follows the Mikaelson family around; a desire of my own volition. I suppressed the urge or need to see you, as best I could."

"Hmm. My life has been real peachy since you left." I said, and then checked myself, and said, quietly, "Sorry. So...we've established that...well, nothing."

"Does it bother you so?" He asked, "You need a logical answer?"

"No." I said, with a shrug, and admitted, "It would just be great if this Phoenix thing came with a manual."

"Hmm." Elijah paused, and proposed, "Then, let's give in to beauty of the unknown."

I thought about it, my eyes danced between his, and then I nodded, and said, "Okay, but just in case...um-humour me." I caressed the sides of his face, gently, and took him into my hands, and I beseeched of him, "Don't listen to me _literally_. Make your own choices about the things I say or ask of you, and...make _good_ choices, but make them your own."

Elijah chuckled, and then he took my hands into his, and he said, "Thank you."

"That's alright. So...which dusty ass room is mine?" I asked.

"Follow me." He requested.

* * *

 **Mikaelson Mansion - My Bedroom**

Hayley had snuck into my room, in the middle of the night, and nestled down beside me. I knew that she was there, I mumbled something about sneaking up on people who can burn her ass both literally, and verbally. She snapped back something about dodging any heavy metal whatever the hell's I threw at that poor man. We nattered back and forth some more before drifting off to sleep again. We had spent the better part of three months together, sleeping in our car, or some sketchy hostel, but never apart; our first night in a dusty, old, definitely haunted house didn't need to be our first night alone.

"GAAAH!" I screamed out and shot straight up in bed.

A hand clasped over my chest as the agony rippled throughout my chest; and just as soon as it had seared through my skin, it was gone. Nothing was there. Nothing physical at least.

"Okay. A little heads up on the sleep-screaming would've been great. That's new." Hayley groaned and sat up too. She grumbled some more and then asked, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." I muttered, "That was...strong...and weird."

"You think something happened to Sophie?" She asked.

I pinched Hayley on the arm and we both whined out, "OW!"

"Nope." I muttered, and kicked off the covers.

"If you get a snack bring me one too." Hayley rambled and nestled back down to sleep.

"Yeah, I think it's blood bags, or dust, around here." I replied.

I could already hear her snoring away by the time I closed the door quietly behind me. I wandered through the hallway, looking at the portraits and knick-knacks along the way, down the stairs, lit by the glorious chandelier in the foyer, and sought out the kitchen. I found Elijah there, in his most casual appearance to date; his suit jacket was off, no tie, shirt sleeves rolled up. He was pouring a cup of tea, and glanced up at my appearance in the doorway.

"I heard you stir." Elijah said, and handed over the cup of tea.

"Thank you." I said, genuinely, and graciously accepted the piping hot cup of exactly what I wanted.

"Are you alright?" He asked.

"That's a pretty loaded question." I replied, and blew gently into the cup.

He smiled back at me, and he placed a hand on the island next to me, casually. My breath hitched in my throat at his sheer proximity.

"I wanted to tell you, earlier. I wanted you to know. I will always protect you." Elijah declared, "You have my word on that."

Before I could question myself, or think twice, I placed a small hand on his cheek and caressed his face, and I kissed the other, gently, and I told him, "I know."

I raised my cup and rasped 'thank you' again, before disappearing back upstairs to my snoring companion.


	56. Wacky New Rules

**French Quarter - Main Street - New Orleans**

Rebekah's name flashed up on my phone. I scoffed, and answered the call, "I'm 100% sure you have the wrong number."

"Where the bloody hell is Elijah?" Rebekah barked back at me.

"Excuse me?" I asked her.

"Klaus is being infuriatingly Klaus-like, and dispensing with obnoxious riddles, something about starting my search with the girl that's taken to sharing his bed." Rebekah scorned.

"Um, I was slumber-partying with Hayley last night, so I'm _not_ the girl at the end of that riddle." I replied.

"Who?" Rebekah asked, from directly behind me, "Oh, right, baby mama."

"Rebekah." I drawled, un-bunched my shoulders, and slid my phone back into my pocket, "Always a pleasure."

"So, Elijah goes missing and you're doing, what exactly? Skipping out for...bagels?" Rebekah asked as she rummaged around inside my paper bag.

"We live in an abandoned dust palace, and I didn't fancy blood bags this morning." I reminded her, "What do you mean he's missing? I saw him last night."

"Of course you know nothing, why else would he send me straight to you? Great. Okay, if I had to take an educated guess, and knowing my diabolical brother as well as I do, Elijah isn't nipping out for bagels with his lady friend because he currently has a dagger in his chest." Rebekah thought out loud, "It's a magical object. Let's find a witch, do a locator spell, locate the dagger, locate Elijah."

I stopped her from tottering away and informed her, "The witches here can't use magic. It's punishable by death – just one of Marcel's wacky new rules."

"Marcel?" Rebekah scoffed, heartily, "Well, he knows very well that I don't exactly roll over when I don't get what I want."

"Rebekah! Hey. Wait. Look, I'm well aware of that as well." I said, and informed her, "But, Hayley and I have been linked to a witch named Sophie Devereaux, so anything you do to her, you do to the both of us."

"Wow. Well played, completely-useless witch." Rebekah scoffed, "Well, luckily for you ladies, Elijah seems to care about both your well-being and Klaus' redemption in equal measure, otherwise both of your necks would be long snapped by now."

"Thaaaanks." I drawled out.

"It's nothing personal." Rebekah replied, and pondered, "How did Marcel get to be so bloody powerful, anyway? He wasn't like this when I left a hundred years ago."

"Apparently he has a way to tell whenever there's magic done in the Quarter." I offered, "And before you ask, no, I don't know how."

"Hmm, well that's next on my to do list." Rebekah said, "Time to consult the irrelevant coven of so-called witches who can't do any bloody magic. Not only are they completely useless, they're also wildly idiotic, honestly, believing that Elijah could convince Klaus to go up against Marcel, when everyone knows that they have history!"

"Klaus sired Marcel, right?" I threw out there.

Rebekah snorted, and informed me, "Marcel is not just some guy that Klaus turned into a vampire. Klaus loved him like a son. I was there the day that they met. We were burying Emil, the Governor's only son...or so we thought. Turns out the governor had another son, from a mother that he owned. Klaus saw himself in the boy. He remembered how our father used to beat him. He, too, was the bastard child of a man who saw him as nothing but a beast. And that is why their plan will fail. All they've done if bring back together two long-lost souls. Without Elijah between them, who knows what they'll do."

Rebekah stormed off down the street, tottering away in her towering heels.

"Hey, could you...let me know when you find him?" I called after her one last time.

She nodded to me, and said, "Of course."

* * *

 **Mikaelson Mansion - Front Courtyard**

I sauntered up the driveway, and slipped my headphones off tentatively as I approached the commotion outside the mansion. I glanced back along the long winding road instinctively, as if anyone would ever be out this way, so far out of town. Klaus tossed a final body onto the small pile of corpses in the front courtyard and wildly berated both Rebekah and Hayley for their behavior, the exact nature of which I hadn't caught yet.

"This is why I told you to never leave the house!" Klaus scorned at Hayley, "Werewolves are banned in the Quarter. I had a plan, and your little nighttime stroll put it all in peril!" Klaus followed Hayley's line of sight and turned to face me. He ranted, "So nice of you to join us! Where the bloody hell have you been?!"

"I've been out looking for Elijah?" I offered, as I surveyed the horror show before us, "I thought that was top of everyone's agenda today? No?"

"No, top of _yours_ is making sure _this one_ doesn't give in to every idiotic, reckless whim that breezes through her mind!" Klaus scorned and glared at Hayley.

I gave the side-eye to Rebekah, who merely shook her head in derision.

"She's not my keeper." Hayley seethed at him.

"She does have a vested interest in keeping you alive. You might want to keep that in mind. I thought she was your friend." Rebekah scoffed and started walking towards the pile of bodies, one of them was still kicking.

"What the hell is this?!" I whispered to Hayley, gesturing around at the dead corpses and severely pissed off Originals.

"Leave him!" Klaus bellowed at Rebekah and stopped her dead in her tracks, "You've done enough, don't you think? Leaving a trail of bodies like a road map to my door?"

"If I hadn't overheard this lot bragging about werewolf heads, everyone here would be screwed!" Rebekah barked back. "And don't give me that crap about having a plan. You've had all the time in the world to execute a plan, and no one's seen you do a damn thing! Elijah made a deal to protect your child, so that it could save you from your selfish, rotten self. But you obviously don't give a damn about the child or Elijah, because what have you done to honor it?

"I have done everything." Klaus seethed, "Let me spell it out for you, shall I? From the day I arrived, Marcel hasn't trusted me. From Day One, he's had his vampires ingest toxic vervain which, as you know, little sister, protects them from my mind control. I needed a spy, someone on the inside with me who Marcel would never suspect. So, I created a Day Zero and got there first. Marcel had just lost six vampires, thanks to your little murder spree, and he needed new recruits. So, I made the new one mine, before he'd had even a drop of vervain. But we all know the real way to a man is through his heart, so…I compelled the pretty bartender to date him, and tell me all." Klaus turned and grabbed up the vampire that was still showing signs of life, and he declared, "And this one – I'm gonna drain him of vervain, compel him to believe his mates found religion and moved to Utah, so that he can explain to Marcel why he lost three more vampires tonight."

Klaus dragged the vampire up the front steps and into the house, with no care whatsoever. All three of the women who had drawn his ire this evening followed him inside. Klaus dropped the body into the foyer and turned back to us. He stretched out his arms, and asked, "Does anyone have any more questions?" He was met with rolled eyes and unimpressed silence. Delighted to have proven his point and come out as the victor, he announced to the room, "No? Good, because I have a question." He turned to Hayley, and asked her in a sing-song voice, "Hayley, what were you doing in the bloody French Quarter in the first place?"

Hayley said nothing.

Klaus bellowed, "Answer me!"

"Leave her be." Rebekah scorned.

"You wanna know what I was doing?" Hayley scorned, and sauntered right up to Klaus, "I was buying poison, so I could put your little baby out of its misery."

Klaus slammed into her with vampire speed and pinned her to the front door by the neck. She screamed and gasped for air. It all happened so fast; I don't even think I fully processed what she'd just said; what those words really meant.

"Nik! NIK!" Rebekah screamed out as she saw him go for her, and then she slammed into Klaus.

She shoved him back, and grabbed him by the shoulders, as though she were physically shaking out the rage. I checked on Hayley whilst Rebekah dealt with Klaus; she coughed and spluttered and massaged her throat.

"Keep your hands off her! She is pregnant, for God's sake!" Rebekah barked, "All of this bluster about not wanting the child, and then the second she tells you she's ready to get rid of it? It's okay to care. It's okay to want something. That's all Elijah was trying to do, all he's ever wanted for you...all we've ever wanted."

Klaus had calmed down almost instantly, but he was still reeling from being confronted with his feelings. He silently sat down on the stairs and Rebekah sat down beside him.

"I gave Elijah to Marcel." Klaus said.

My heart dropped down into the very pit of my stomach. I turned around slowly to face him, and I seethed, "You did what?"

"Marcel was nervous." Klaus explained, "It's bad enough one Original returned to town, but two? His crew was getting antsy. He wanted Elijah gone, so...I gave him a peace offering."

"You bartered our brother?" Rebekah scorned.

"I have a plan." Klaus rasped, coldly, "Gain Marcel's trust, dismantle his empire, honor Elijah's wish that that baby be born. I am executing that plan the only way I know how. If you don't like it, there's the door. See if I care."

Klaus rose from the steps, and he left the silent room.

* * *

 **Mikaelson Mansion - Back Porch**

Later on that night, I found Rebekah sat on one of the back porch rocking chairs, pensively staring off into the silent grounds. I stepped outside, and wrapped my cardigan around myself a little tighter, in part response to the slight breeze, but mostly because Rebekah still scared me a little.

"I know you don't know Hayley very well...or like me very much...but thank you." I told her, "I appreciate what you did back there, saving her from those goons...and by extension, me too."

"Us girls have got to look out for each other." She replied, simply, without taking her gaze off the horizon.

"What is it with you two?" I asked her, taking a seat in the chair beside her, "You say you hate him, but the way you deal with him, it's so clear. Even when you hate him, you still love him."

"I guess when you spend a thousand years with someone, deciding to quit them is like losing a part of yourself." Rebekah mused, "But sometimes the hate is just...so powerful. Emil wasn't the only boyfriend of mine that Klaus killed. He did it again, and again, every time I found someone to care about. He just kept doing it until, finally, I stopped falling in love. He said he was protecting me from my mistakes, that no one was ever good enough for his little sister. Until one day, someone was. He found out about Marcel and I...I talked him down from killing him. Klaus put me down for 52 years instead. He said that I needed a lesson in what I could not take from him. The second that this hex is lifted, you should run for the hills."

"Even if it was lifted tomorrow, I'm not leaving Hayley in the lurch and I'm not leaving without making sure that Elijah is okay." I informed her.

She glanced to the side for the first time, and she looked me up and down. She smirked, and she said, "Elijah cares a great deal about you. And if you were listening to even an ounce of what I just said, you would realise, that is not good news for you."

"Hmm. I woke up last night, feeling like I'd been stabbed in the heart. Just me. Hayley didn't feel it." I told her, "It went away as soon as it happened, and then I went downstairs and I had a whole conversation with Elijah...he made me tea." Rebekah raised her brow, and I continued, "And...Hayley just told me, that I never left the room. I fell back asleep almost instantly, and she was up for a few more hours, playing on her phone." Rebekah's attention did not waver, she remained silent and she listened intently. I scoffed and I told her, "He wanted to make sure that I was okay, and he told me that he would always protect me. I felt him go down and didn't even realise it, and that wasn't some random dream, that _was_ him. And I don't need to explain myself to you. I'm _not_ leaving him."

"I will get Elijah back." Rebekah said firmly.

"We know that Marcel has Elijah, so why don't we just go get him back ourselves?" I asked.

"Because, if I cross my brother, then I go down too. There is still a coffin downstairs with my name on it." Rebekah replied, "And being in one of his sibling's favour doesn't mean jack to Nik, so you need to rein in all of your pining, immediately."

"I'm not afraid of Klaus." I said, monotonously.

I eyed Rebekah's emphatic declaration for a moment more, then I reached down and retrieved something stowed away inside my cardigan, something pointy, wrapped up in cloth. I unfolded it and revealed two silver daggers.

"Oh, my god." Rebekah uttered, breathily.

"Hayley found them under your coffin." I told her, "So, if a couple of antique steak knives were the only things stopping you from getting Elijah back, then here you go."

I offered the daggers over to Rebekah, and she took them in slight awe. Finally, she smiled, and I smiled back.

"You need back up?" I asked her.

She shook her head, maniacally, and she stated, "No. I can handle Marcel."


	57. The Words That Broke The Storm

**Mikaelson Mansion - Study - 09:00**

Rebekah pouted and sighed heavily as she surveyed the smoldering pile of ashes in the front yard. She turned to Klaus and I, and she whined, "I cannot believe you disposed of those vampires without me. You know how I love to set things on fire! You don't get the monopoly on that, love."

I said nothing. I simply parked myself down in the imposing desk chair, settling in to the fact that another round of bickering would have to ensue before we made any real progress towards rescuing Elijah.

Klaus smirked and posed, "Was I supposed to leave them in the front yard to rot? Besides, they were my responsibility. They attacked the helpless pregnant girl who's carrying my child!"

Rebekah rolled her eyes, and declared, "Oh, I am so moved by your new-found sense of fatherly duties towards the werewolf carrying your hybrid bun in her oven."

"Can we circle back to discussing the plan?" I asked them both and tossed a paper weight up in the air, idly.

"Well, that depends what plan you mean, love: my plan for global domination, or Rebekah's plan to find love in a cruel, cruel world?" Klaus laughed.

Rebekah took a pencil from the desk beside her and launched it in Klaus' direction. Klaus caught the projectile with ease before it could embed itself in his face.

I sighed, and over-enunciated, "The plan to rescue Elijah. You know, the good brother? The one who is now in the possession of your mortal enemy after you stabbed him in the back?"

Klaus smirked, and noted, "In the front, if we're being specific."

I couldn't keep the contempt off my face. I glared back at Klaus, all the while pulling myself back internally: I need him. I need them both. Without them, no Elijah.

"You two said that you would get him back." I reminded them, calmly, "So, is there a plan, or what?"

"Okay." Klaus sighed and paced around the room as he declared, "Well, firstly, Marcel is not my mortal enemy, he's my friend, albeit one who is unaware that I'm trying to sabotage his hold over the supernatural community of the French Quarter, but a friend nonetheless. And secondly, I daggered Elijah in order to gain Marcel's trust. If I had known he would place my brother in the hands of a particularly nasty teenage witch, I certainly would have weighed my options a bit differently. And thirdly-" He turned his attention to Rebekah and gestured for her to speak on his behalf, "Sister, please."

Rebekah piped up and informed me, "And thirdly, the plan, as you have demanded, is for Niklaus to simply ask Marcel for Elijah back."

I widened my eyes, and looked between them both. Nope. They were not cracking. I asked them, incredulously, "That's...that's not the whole plan, is it?"

Rebekah scoffed, and said, "Please! Klaus may be a miserable excuse for a sibling, but there is none more diabolical."

"Well that's only the Plan A, love!" Klaus said, "There's always a Plan B."

"And pray tell, what is Plan B?" I asked.

Klaus smiled wildly, and he declared, "War."

* * *

 **Mikaelson Mansion - Study - 15:00**

Unsurprisingly, Marcel had outright rejected Klaus' request. So, that left us with the aforementioned war.

Sophie Deveraux burst out of the study and almost barreled right into me. She stormed out of the house without a word. I turned to Klaus who was now casually resting against the door frame and I asked him what the hell that was all about, and also kindly requested that he didn't piss off the woman whose life was tethered to mine.

"Sophie Deveraux will perform a teeny tiny locator spell to help us find Elijah, and his watchful captor Sabrina." Klaus informed me, simply.

"Davina will find us long before-" I reminded him.

"-Not if another witch is performing a more powerful spell just down the road at the same time." Klaus replied, and gestured a little, " _Smokescreen_."

"Why would she help you?" I asked him, "What did you do to her?"

Klaus feigned offense, for all of two seconds, and then he explained, "The witches want Davina away from Marcel, but they don't where she is. She is with Elijah. Everybody wins."

"Apart from the _smokescreen_ witch." I noted, mimicking his little gesture.

"Ah yes, no, Katie does not fair well at all in this particular plan." Klaus said, with a sad little shake of his head, "But alas, you cannot win a war without a few strategic losses, and Katie knows this quite well."

"What does that mean?" I reluctantly asked.

"Well, back when Sophie's poor sister, Jane-Anne, was fleeing for her life, just as she began to believe that freedom was hers, that she had escaped her most brutal and tragic demise, she was caught in the cargo hold of a freighter that was mere seconds from sailing away down the Mississippi. And how much of a coincidence was it that Thierry, Katie's beau, happened to manage Marcel's business out of those very same docks, and gained a remarkable amount of clout for recovering the escapee?" Klaus pondered, theatrically.

"Oh, shit." I huffed out, and looked back at the door that Sophie had long stormed out of.

"Poetic justice." Klaus ruminated, and repeated, "Everybody wins."

* * *

 **The Abattoir – Masquerade Gala - 21:30**

Klaus had steered Marcel towards a rousting of the witches that night, and then compelled his puppet vampire to attack Katie. He wasn't supposed to outright kill her, he was told to skirt the line enough to invoke her handsome prince's rabid intervention. Marcel overlooked vampire-witch courtship, but he would never overlook vampire on vampire murder; that would be unforgivable. And Katie would be forced to use magic to save her man: _Smokescreen_.

Rebekah had ensured that Marcel would be suitably distracted at the evening's elaborate festivities by inviting Camille, his favourite very human bartender. The plan was elaborate and it was diabolical, sure, but truthfully, I never piped up. I didn't say a word. All that I chose to hone in on, as Klaus and Rebekah explained every nuance of their ideas, was the prospect of Elijah's return. And so, I played my small simple part: I beefed up their cover. I joined the Mikaelson siblings, and I went to the damn party.

Now that I've brushed over my completely selfish intent and disregard for the fact that I was delivering round-about sort-of justified justice for Sophie, the woman who risks the life of my best friend, her unborn child, and to a lesser extent, my life, on a regular continuous basis, let's talk about this damn party!

Marcel should not quit his day job. He has found his calling in life, and it is throwing incredible parties. Everywhere that you looked, something new caught your eye; acrobats swung around, and twirled and danced up in the rafters, suspended in silk ribbons, dancers handled exotic animals on podiums, and confetti fell down glittering upon the party guests like shimmering snow. It was beautiful; my eyes danced around the room. Klaus occupied Camille, whilst Rebekah ordered our drinks.

A rather beautiful man approached me and extended his hand to me, requesting, "May I have this dance, Rosanna?"

I accepted it, catching a quick glance of Rebekah's perked up brow as I did, and I took an educated guess, "Hmm. A request. Not a threat. This is a weird dynamic, Marcel."

Marcel smiled his truly handsome smile, and said "One that I hope will endure."

He lead me out on to the dance floor, and he told me, "I'm interested in one thing only: maintaining the good thing that I've got going on here. I'm not looking for war if I can avoid it, and I'm not looking to make any more enemies."

"Does anyone ever, really?" I mused, "I love the status quo. It's so under-rated."

"You can't rock up to my party on the arm of Klaus Mikaelson and then say _that_ with a straight face." Marcel said, with a wide grin.

"Okay, I'm here for the free bar." I admitted, sarcastically, "You caught me. I can't even hazard a guess at what you're raising money for. Circus animal rights? Nah, you've got a lot of them squished in here."

Marcel scoffed, and he coolly explained, "You are a newcomer to our great city so, let me explain to rules to you, very clearly, and we will not have a problem: No magic in the Quarter. Do we understand each other?"

I squinted at him, and I said, "Okay. Concise. But uh, I'm not a witch."

"You're not performing parlor tricks out here." Marcel said, and he warned me, "Just know that I will know every move you make, and there will be repercussions."

"Did you just threaten me?" I asked him.

"Did you just forget where Elijah is?" Marcel hit back, and spun me elegantly.

I stopped dancing with him. I stared back at him, and I said, "I'm not on Team Klaus...yet. You don't want _me_ as your enemy, Marcel. And that is not a threat. That's a simple fact."

"A simple snap of Sophie's neck and I wouldn't have to worry about your fighting talk anymore." Marcel said.

I smiled up at him, and I said, "You just over-played your hand. If you really knew what I was...or what I could do...you'd know _that_ course of action would only serve to hurt you more." I brushed a little glitter off his jacket, and I insisted, "Return Elijah. Safe and sound. That is _my_ one and only interest."

Marcel nodded cordially to me, and I sauntered away from the dance floor.

* * *

 **Mikaelson Mansion - Reception Room - 23:00**

Hayley put her bowl of popcorn down on the coffee table and she cleared space for me to sit down beside her. I slumped down on to the couch, and my dress crumpled along with me.

"Aren't you miss the show?" She asked me after checking the time on her phone, "Come on, that's the deal with this house arrest, I have to live vicariously through you."

I rolled my head listlessly to look at her, and sighed. I shuffled up a little and I told her, "I saw Marcel lose his shit at Thierry...and that was enough for one evening. I did my bit, so...I was excused."

Hayley thought for a moment and then she asked, "You're going all mushy, aren't you?"

I scoffed, "What?"

"They are not good people." Hayley reminded me, "Katie sent Jane-Anne to her death."

"I didn't know Jane-Anne." I shot back, "I don't know Katie. Why am I the one that gets to deliver sweet, sweet justice?"

"It's not you. It's Klaus. And Rebekah. And Sophie." She said.

"It's not even about being the third party hammer of justice. Tonight made me realise that I am on Team Klaus, and previously just the thought of being on said team would have made me projectile vomit everywhere!" I exclaimed, and then checked myself, "God. Sorry."

"Hey, don't apologize." Hayley laughed, "I can't always tell if it's morning sickness, or I'm having the same reaction."

"Is this how it starts? He's the lesser of two evils, in a fight that's really got nothing to do with me, and then I just sit back and watch it all happen." I said, "'Cause that's undeniable. That's not Klaus. That's _super_ me."

" _You_ are getting Elijah back from Marcel. That is what you are doing. And as much as it physically pains me to say this...I do believe that is what Klaus is doing, first, and the world domination thing is a close second." Hayley said, "Katie sucks. Her boyfriend sucks. This is Karma. Big picture: they led Jane-Anne to the slaughter, to be slaughtered by the guy who is currently holding Elijah captive. They are not good people. You're not going all holier than thou. You're not playing God. You are not endorsing Klaus. You are getting Elijah back the only way that you know how. And...if that has to say anything, then it says more about what Elijah means to you, above anything else."

 _This_ is what Elijah means to me. Okay. If my entire brain wasn't stuck on him before, it certainly was now, but it wasn't clouded and frustrated anymore; it was clearing. It felt as though the thunder clouds had brewed for long enough, the crackle and deafening rumble of Hayley putting it all into words had finally broken the storm. The rain was falling down, and it was the purest feeling of relief. I was standing in the rain and I was watching the clouds lighten above me.

I could tell that Hayley knew; I had heard her, every word, and I smiled, and she pulled me into an embrace. I wiped away a tear, and I told her, " _This_ reminds me of the time that Elena came home in a ballgown after chasing a boy all night. A stupid boy, albeit, and I sat on the couch, in my pyjamas, eating peanut butter banana toast...and it's so weird being on the other side. Remind me to call her tomorrow."

"We will get him back." Hayley assured me, one final time, and for the first time, I didn't need to hear it.

"I actually danced with Marcel tonight." I told her, "And he politely warned me that if I perform any magic in the French Quarter, I will _suffer the consequences_."

"Whooooa." Hayley scoffed, "I wanna see that."

"Eh, not really." I said, "He said he would just snap Sophie's neck to get rid of me."

"Ah. That sucks for me." Hayley mused, "Not so much for you."

"Exactly." I replied, "Rebekah would get her bonfire and I'd get stronger."

"Did he realise that?" She asked.

"No." I said, "He must think I'm just some out-of-town witch."

"More fool him." Hayley scoffed.

* * *

 **Mikaelson Mansion- Foyer - 01:30**

Rebekah slammed the front door, and stormed inside the house, but it sounded like Klaus caught the door and stormed after her. I rolled my eyes at Hayley and she sat back in her bed, she wasn't getting up for this nonsense. I sauntered through to the mezzanine overlooking the foyer and headed for the staircase as they argued with each other, heatedly.

"Well, tonight was an epic failure!" Rebekah shouted at her brother.

"On the contrary, sister! Tonight was a masterpiece." Klaus shot back.

"Are you mad?!" Rebekah whined, "Katie died before Sophie could complete the spell."

"Oh, I'm well aware." Klaus said, nonchalantly, "I killed Katie."

Rebekah looked utterly appalled, and she scorned, "You what?"

"There's no way our little suicide witch wasn't gonna try and take out Marcel with her." Klaus explained, "I saved his life, and in doing so, I now have him exactly where I want him."

"Sophie trusted you." Rebekah scorned, "I trusted you! Against all my better instincts."

Klaus looked offended, and spat, "Wake up, Rebekah! The witches are on nobody's side but their own. This girl, Davina? That's all they want, and when they have her, what do you think happens then, a truce? Of course not. They will use Davina's power against all of us."

"Even if you're right, the plan was to find Elijah, and you failed us!" Rebekah scorned.

"You always did lack faith." Klaus seethed, and explained, "By protecting Marcel, I've cemented his trust, so much so that he's agreed to return Elijah to us. And when the time is right, when he has told me everything I need to know about Davina, I will have her for myself."

My heart skipped a beat at that revelation; the former, not the latter; I didn't bat an eyelid for the latter.

Rebekah stepped into her brother's face, and she scorned, "I have all the faith in the world that you'll get what you want, Nik. You always do, no matter what it costs the rest of us. You disgust me."

She stormed up the stairs. I stepped to the side to let her pass.

Klaus turned his attention over to me, and with a neutral expression, he said, "Marcel said you threatened him, to get Elijah back."

"I did nothing of the sort." I said, calmly, and truthfully.

"It wasn't the course of action we'd agreed upon. Pray tell, what is it about my brother that always inspires such instant admiration?" Klaus asked.

I didn't even have to think about it. I told him, "He would rather stay exactly where he is, than be a part of what we did tonight."

"You don't know that." Klaus said.

"Well, we helped the woman who is holding your last big chance for redemption hostage, so...I'll stick with my first guess." I reminded him.

"Everything I did was for him." Klaus uttered.

"Everything?" I whispered, rhetorically, before I followed Rebekah's path upstairs.


	58. Testing The Water

**Mikaelson Mansion - Reception Room**

"I don't care if we have to get you a leash, that was your last trip to the Bayou." Rebekah declared. She shot her attention to me, and said, "And you! Stop following her every stupid notion and stop enabling her idiocy!"

I nodded subtly, not raising my gaze from my glass. It was a fair request. The past few days had been nothing short of fruitless and rather frustrating. In short, Agnes had hired a witchy mob to kill Hayley during a baby check up. A wolf had lead me to Hayley, fleeing for her life, and we made quick work of said mob. An additional mob took her down with wolfsbane-laced arrows, and yes, you guessed it, took me down along with her. This lead us to the realization that Hayley's baby, being part vampire, had the capability of curing her own mother. Handy. Today was spent traipsing around the Bayou with Sophie Devereaux, collecting up the consecration-worthy dead bits of said witchy mob, whilst Hayley searched the swamp for her own lost ancestors, or at the very least the friendly neighborhood guide wolf.

Rebekah shook her head at the both of us and took the glass of bourbon from my hand. She plonked herself down beside us, and asked Hayley, "What is it with you and those wolves, anyway?"

"I feel like we're connected somehow." Hayley said, sadly, "I don't know. Maybe it's just some pipe dream that I have of finding any real family out there. But sometimes, when I feel like it's me against the world, it keeps me going."

I poured myself another drink, and I told her, "Well, if you ask me, family is a pain in the behind, especially this one."

"Rude." Rebekah scoffed.

"And, as for being in it alone, how dare you?" I said, "I don't go traipsing through alligator soup and spending my afternoons picking up dead witch bits for just anyone."

Hayley smiled, and squeezed my hand. She thanked both of us for our help, and we went about seriously considering our next steps. Our conversation was interrupted by Klaus walking through the front door.

"Nik, finally!" Rebekah sighed, plonking her glass down as she rose, "What-"

Elijah walked through the door after his brother with a huge smile across his face. My heart skipped a beat, and then another, and for a brief moment I thought that was it. This was me. Game over. But no, my heart chose to thunder away from me instead of calling it quits. Hayley immediately looked back at me, and she made a point of taking the glass out of my hand, so certain that I'd drop it. Rebekah ran over to her brother and hugged him tightly.

"Elijah!" Rebekah exclaimed, "You're safe!"

She finally released him, and took him all in. Elijah had caught sight of Hayley and I as he looked over Rebekah's shoulder. He smiled at us, and I smiled right back, and then I muttered 'excuse me' to Hayley and I left the room.

I heard Rebekah laugh, and ask him, "Now that you're home, is your first plan to kill Niklaus?"

My hands were resting gently against the patio railing and patting against it lightly. I was breathing in the cool night air, and looking up at the stars; I fought to still my racing heart; he must have heard it.

Elijah stepped out of the back door a short while after I had, and he found me with ease. I could feel him there, long before I saw him. I turned to face him, and I could no longer contain the smile, or start to push back the utter joy and relief that I felt to see him stood before me once again.

"You're back." I said.

Elijah grinned and his eyes danced all over me. He nodded, and he said, "I'm back."

A moment can be built up in the mind; absence _can_ make the heart grow ever fonder to the point that the person is no longer real, they become a fairy tale, and when you finally meet each other again, the magic _can_ dissipate. We looked at each other for another beat, as though we were remembering all of the other's details and nuances, what was real, and what we had imagined while parted, and then I just couldn't wait one more second and I didn't think anymore. I gave in to every feeling I had ever had for the man, and I kissed Elijah, for the first time. Well, I took the first step, and he took every other, abandoning any sense of decorum or care for an audience. He pulled me into a fervent, heated kiss. He pulled my body up against his, his hands exploring every inch, my waist, my hips, my neck. I was always attracted to Elijah; he was handsome, and charming and everything that story books told me to look for in a man. This connection, the way that I felt about him, everything that had brought us to this moment, it all terrified me. I was in, so deep.

We parted; the energy and the bliss still buzzing around us. I whispered to him, and I guess to myself, "Welcome home."

* * *

 **Mikaelson Mansion - Kitchen - 08:30**

Elijah found me the next morning rifling around in the fridge, moving about blood bags, looking for well...anything remotely edible.

"Good morning." He said.

I poked my head out of the fridge, and I smiled at him. He was leant so casually in the doorway, intimating he'd watched my desperate search for a little while.

"Hey." I said, just as Rebekah came through the back door, breaking our lock on each other, dragging a trash can behind her. I cleared my throat, and I awkwardly asked, "So, can we make sure that milk find it's way on to the grocery list? Just once in a while? Said the very appreciative freeloader."

"Speaking of, add bleach." Rebekah requested, and stomped her way through the kitchen towards the living room.

Elijah dug around in a cupboard whilst I triumphantly pulled some cleverly hidden ice cream out of the back of the freezer. Elijah took the ice-cream out of my hands, grimaced and then placed it back in the freezer, and requested I let him work. I raised my hands in defeat as he started gathering up ingredients.

"You know, I do hope my siblings were hospitable to you in my absence." Elijah said.

I pulled myself up on to the counter next to him, and swung my legs a little as I explained, "In your _absence_ , as you like to call it, which is a way-too-polite way of saying that your brother put a dagger in your heart, I have had my life repeatedly threatened, both directly and indirectly, _thank you curse_ , but I was only taken down once, second-hand, by witches who are convinced that baby is actually Lucifer. But, your siblings have been weirdly protective of us both, and I know that I have you to thank for that."

Elijah looked pensive, and as he added the omelette mixture into the pan, he uttered, "Do not thank me. I'm the sole reason this burden has fallen upon you."

"Yeah. About that..." I said, quietly, "I got your message."

Elijah smiled at me; from here, his eyes were level with mine. He positioned himself between my legs. He kissed me, softly at first, as though testing the waters in the cold light of day, testing to see whether last night was a one-off, a mistake, simply a rush of unwanted emotion. Uh. Nope. My arms wrapped around his neck, hands disappeared into his hair; his arms called my body closer into his.

"Your eggs are burning." Rebekah hollered from outside the room.

Elijah broke away, and removed the pan from the heat as I slid down from the counter, flustered. He cleared his throat, ran a hand through his hair, and then suggested, "So, back to the murderous witches. I have some concerns."

"They're evil." I said, as I watched him plate up my breakfast, "And, my life and Hayley's are still magically linked to Sophie Deveraux, which is not super comforting."

"Yes, I think it's time we took care of that little problem." Elijah said, vaguely.

Rebekah suddenly re-entered the kitchen, dragging the corpse of a random girl across the floor behind her. I looked at Elijah, in confusion, but he simply shook his head.

"I am all for it!" Rebekah declared, "As soon as they're un-linked, we get to leave this crap town. Who do we have to kill?"

Elijah considered this for a moment, and then shrugged as he said, "Probably no one."

I gave Elijah a significant look of disbelief. Elijah rolled his eyes and sighed.

"Alright, potentially everyone." He rasped.

* * *

 **Mikaelson Mansion - Hayley's Bedroom - 20:05**

Hayley and I had randomly yelped out in pain from separate rooms earlier. We pulled our hands away from our necks, and noticed the trickle of blood from a small puncture wound that was already starting to heal over. We met each other half way through the house, each rubbing our tense necks, and asked in almost perfect unison, "Stabbed in the neck?"

Rebekah was drawn to our grumbles, and we all stewed in the inevitable: something bad was happening, and it was something Sophie related. Rebekah assured us that Davina was going to perform the un-linking spell in due course, so we weren't to worry too much. This would all be over before we knew it.

Approximately one hour later, Hayley had us worrying, a whole bunch. She was sprawled out on her bed, profusely sweating. I blotted sweat from her forehead and chest with a damp washcloth as Rebekah paced around in front of us, growing ever more concerned over her rapid deterioration.

"Stop fussing, will you?" Rebekah whined at her, "Elijah will be here any minute."

"It's going to be okay." I assured her.

Hayley groaned out, loudly, "HOW? How am I going to be okay?! I feel like I've been microwaved! Why aren't you melting too?!"

I scoffed at her and said, "Um, thanks for wanting to condemn me to this horror show too."

"I'm really not in the mood for your sass right now?!" Hayley scorned.

"Okay, mom." I groaned, and raised my hands in defeat.

"Hey!" Rebekah barked, and took the washcloth from my hands, "Just because you're carrying a baby doesn't mean you get to act like one! I'm sure my little niece is healing you up as we speak."

Rebekah stepped back and she whispered to me, "Do you think the un-linking thing only worked on you?"

"I run at a million degrees at the best of times." I said, with a shrug, "I feel a little stuffy, but nothing close to _that_. Hmm. Move over, actually, I have an idea."

I placed a firm grip on Hayley's arm and I concentrated on siphoning off the heat from her skin. She was uncomfortably hot to touch, but she stopped writhing around quite as much.

"Whatever you're doing...don't you dare stop." Rebekah whispered.

* * *

Hayley was wrapped in a wet towel, perched along the edge of the swimming pool, shaking uncontrollably. Rebekah stood behind her, checking the progress of her alarming temperature; she shook her head; it was still going up, incrementally. I had held onto Hayley, siphoning the heat from her skin, while Elijah assisted Sophie with the herbs.

"I can't keep this up." I huffed out to Rebekah. I could feel the poison searing its way through my own veins, interrupting my control and concentration, mugging up my own thoughts. It was getting harder and harder to breathe. I groaned out, "We need to do this now."

"Get her in the water!" Sophie demanded.

Elijah shrugged off his jacket and rolled up his sleeves; he jumped into the pool and helped Hayley in. Sophie mashed some herbs up in a cup and followed them both into the water.

Rebekah scorned at them both as she helped me up to my feet, "I don't see how a midnight swim is supposed to help."

"Her temperature is sky-high. The water, with the help of the herbs, should cool her down." Sophie explained and handed Hayley the herbal concoction, "Drink this!" She turned to Elijah and said, "You're going to have to get her heart rate down."

"How do you suggest I do that?" Elijah asked.

"Hold her." Sophie said, "It's a natural human remedy to slow the heart rate and reduce blood pressure."

Rebekah couldn't keep the rattled look off her face, and she staggered towards them, whining, "This is never gonna work."

Elijah picked Hayley up and held her bridal-style in the pool. He insisted, "Davina will break the link, we just need time."

Hayley clung to Elijah and gasped for breath.

"I can't breathe!" Hayley whined.

"Okay, long deep breaths, Hayley!" Elijah said, "Look at me. Long deep breaths, just focus on the sound of my voice." He lowered his voice to a whisper and told her, "You'll be okay. You'll be okay."

First, Sophie grumbled and slapped a hand to her chest in agony. Then, Hayley screamed out in pain and thrashed about in Elijah's hold, "AHHHH! AHHHH!"

I muttered a profanity under my breath and braced myself for the exact same sharp stab to the chest. Man, it stung like a **BEEP** ; like what I can only imagine a stake to the heart would feel like, and then a bellowing rush of hissing pain erupting out of the wound, like the stake was yanked out again; but looking down, there was nothing. I gasped as the linking spell began to lift, the pain was dissipating but my vision was clouding over. I fell to my knees.

"REBEKAH!" Elijah barked.

Rebekah flashed back to my side, and caught my tumble in the nick of time. She gestured back to her brother; I was okay. In the pool, Sophie looked up at the sky, looking almost disappointed, and she said, "It's done. I felt it lift."

If I'd been in a sturdier state I would have muttered, 'yeah, no shit.' Rebekah sighed in relief. Hayley started to calm down, and Elijah looked a little stunned that we'd managed to pull this off. Hayley stood up on her own, but still leant against Elijah, still weak from the spell. Sophie removed one of her earrings and poked her palm with it. Hayley showed her unaffected palm to Elijah. He looked back at Rebekah; she cradled my hand and she nodded to her brother. He awaited Hayley's assertion that she could walk on her own, before flashing out of the pool, locked in to a mission.

"Elijah...as soon as your brother finds out that the link is broken, he'll kill Agnes." Sophie implored, "I know you don't owe me anything, but please, don't let him kill her. Elijah! She's our only access to the power we need to survive. Promise me that you'll stop him!"

Elijah blatantly ignored her desperate pleas for a while, whilst he made a quick phone call.

"It's me, where are you?" He rasped, "Don't hurt her. I'll be there shortly."

He hung up the phone abruptly and turned to Sophie Devereaux. With a certain darkness brewing behind his eyes, he told her, "I will make you one last promise. I won't let my brother kill Agnes."

Sophie nodded at him gratefully and thanked him, but I caught the twinge in Rebekah's brow; she'd seen it too.

Elijah flashed over to me; and he perched down before me. He didn't say anything. He took my hand into his, and he caressed along my palm; I closed my hand around his. I caressed his face, but he wouldn't look at me. I whispered to him that I was fine, it was okay. He kissed my hand, and then he flashed away.


	59. The Girl That I Used To Know

**Mikaelson Mansion - My Bedroom**

I woke up to the sun peeping through the shades. I looked to the side, half-expecting to see Elijah laying there, but it was empty, and it was still made up. I pushed the covers off a little, and caressed everything that hurt; the back of my head throbbed, and my wrists felt raw. I looked down at what I was wearing: just my pants and what I assumed was a t-shirt of Elijah's. We were hooking up, last night, I remember that much, and then...darkness. I searched for my phone, and then noticed a note on the bed-stand which read: _Hayley is missing. You collapsed last night, as though you were knocked out cold. Until we have answers, please, I implore you to stay put. I will be back shortly. Call me when you wake up. Elijah._

* * *

 **The Bayou - Abandoned Werewolf Camp**

"If only this mystery assailant had kidnapped _you_ instead. Elijah could simply turn on his homing beacon, and we wouldn't have to traipse through this slog all morning." Klaus mused from behind me.

I turned around, unfortunately, to find Klaus kicking around an empty beer can, his nose stuck up to the sky in disgust. Elijah was approaching the camp just behind him.

"Indeed. Sorry I didn't get the chance to offer myself up before I hit the deck." I replied, monotonously.

"A pity, indeed." Klaus declared, and sauntered over into my personal space, "Pray do tell why we find you here, so fresh on the trail? Any little nuggets of information we should know? Another ill-advised reckless adventure gone awry? Hmm, Thelma? Where the bloody hell is Louise?"

I gestured to Hayley's cellphone, which I had triumphantly pulled from the campground debris, and I told him, patronizingly, "I used the 'Find My Phone' App, and Hayley and I have been here before, once. But I honestly don't know why she'd come back to the abandoned trash palace."

"I asked you to wait." Elijah said.

"And I thought the link was broken." I shot back, a little harsher than was perhaps required.

"It is." Elijah reiterated, "Sophie tested it. Davina assured me."

"Can the lover's spat wait?" Klaus moaned from the background, "It's going to get dark soon."

"It's like 10 o'clock." I spat back, and posed, "Unless I randomly developed narcolepsy last night, the link to Sophie is the only one that is broken."

Elijah thought for a moment, and then proposed, "It was a chained spell; Sophie to Hayley, Hayley to you. An addendum. She needs to perform it again. And she will. We should head south towards the water."

"You seem much more determined to find the little wolf." Klaus prattled on from behind us, "Might I remind you that your new bed mate is literally indestructible. There's no need to rush."

"If I'm moving too fast for you, Niklaus, you're welcome to wait in the car. Do be certain to leave the windows down." Elijah shot back.

"Ah, so I've touched a nerve? Tremendous." Klaus chuckled and then froze instantly. He sniffed at the air and shuffled his beady eyes around the campsite.

"Have you found her scent?" Elijah asked him.

"No, but I have found someone else's." Klaus determined and lead us over to an SUV. He started rifling through the trunk and eventually explained, "This vehicle reeks of someone I thought I was rid of...Tyler Lockwood."

"What?" I huffed out.

"And, why would your little hybrid-sidekick from Mystic Falls have any interest in Hayley?" Elijah asked.

"He wants revenge because I went after his girl." Klaus said, in a rather blase fashion.

"Went after?" I scoffed, and reminded him, "You bit Caroline. She was at the brink of death. I had a front row seat to the entire show."

"Why do I suspect this is the least of your offenses?" Elijah sighed out, and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Back when I had the means to sire hybrids, he was my first. Although, I didn't give him much choice in the matter." Klaus explained. He pulled a blanket out of the abandoned car and sniffed it. He said, "He was loyal in the beginning, but he grew insubordinate, turned my other hybrids against me. I couldn't have that, so I massacred the lot of them."

"And raised Silas in the process." I noted, "Which got my brother murdered."

"An unintentional short-lived side effect." Klaus replied, flatly, "Tyler ran like a coward before I could finish him off."

Elijah sighed again in frustration, and asked, "Anything else that you would like to share?"

"Hmm. Don't forget the whole drowning his mom...thing." I said.

Elijah looked incredulous, and scorned, "You killed his mother. Wonderful."

"He needed to be taught a lesson!" Klaus argued.

"And what lesson will you be taught, Niklaus, if he retaliates by harming Hayley?" Elijah seethed, "-Niklaus, so help me-"

"Enough!" Klaus spat back at his brother, "I will end this prickle in my arse for good."

No! No. No. Klaus poised himself to spirit away but I slammed into him sharply, and shoved him back. He looked back at me in tickled disbelief, glancing back between Elijah and I.

"We are not killing him." I scorned tersely.

"Stay in your bloody lane, girl." Klaus scoffed.

"We meet back here in one hour, should our search for Hayley prove unfruitful." Elijah suggested to the group.

Klaus nodded once with a sharp smirk, and then disappeared.

"Elijah." I whined.

" _I_ won't harm the boy. I cannot speak for Klaus." Elijah said and spirited away into the woods.

* * *

"What the hell are you doing?" I asked Tyler. He was furiously searching from tent to tent, chucking bits about in frustration. He hung his head and ran his hands through his hair as I put two and two together, and laughed, "Oh my god, she gave you the slip?"

Tyler looked over his shoulder and took me in for a minute. It had been a while, but despite his haggard expression, and the bags under his eyes, he looked good. He laughed, darkly and he shrugged his shoulders a little. He rasped, "Figures. I heard you two were besties again."

"Whatever this is, your feud with Klaus, it has nothing to do with Hayley." I said.

"Wow, you know, it _has_ been a while, Ro, but I figured you would have grown up a little by now." Tyler scorned back at me, "It has everything to do with Hayley! You're seriously defending her? You're even friends with her? After everything she did!"

"She was lied to." I implored, "Shane told her that they would all come back."

"Then she's not just a selfish back-stabber, she's also a prize idiot!" Tyler scorned.

I stepped up into him, and told him, "I'm _not_ going to let you hurt an innocent baby. I shouldn't even have to say that, Tyler!"

"It's half _Klaus_ \- the guy that murdered your aunt. My mom. My friends. Didn't even blink." He said, incredulously, "It's going to bring about a whole shit storm of pain and destruction. And the girl that I used to know, wouldn't be shacking up with ancient monsters, and defending traitors. What the hell happened to you, Ro?!"

"I'm linked to her, Ty." I told him, feebly. It was all that I could say.

"What?" He asked.

"It's a long story." I said, "But, whatever you do to her, it happens to me! So, thank you for the headache and the stinging wrists!"

Without missing a beat, or showing an ounce of concern, Tyler shrugged, and he said, "That's on her." He turned his attention back to the camp and he barked, "HAYLEY! Don't make this harder than it has to be! Give up now...I'll end it quick."

Klaus suddenly appeared behind him and declared, "Quite an offer! Though, not one I'll be extending to you."

Tyler's entire body clenched. He turned, defensively, braced himself for a fight and hissed out Klaus' name.

"Hello, Tyler. You look well! I aim to change that." Klaus declared, whimsically. He smiled widely and wagged his finger about, "Threatening a pregnant girl in order to exact revenge against me? I never expected you to sink so low! I admit, I'm impressed!"

Tyler ducked away from Klaus' advance and made a point of putting more distance between them. He scoffed, and shot back, "I used to hang out with you. I guess something must have rubbed off."

"What would Caroline say if she saw what you've become?" Klaus posed, "Perhaps I'll ask her when I call her to tell her of your demise."

Tyler smiled back, and laughed, "Whatever happens to me, Caroline's never going to stop hating you!"

Klaus' face ran cold in one chilling instance, and he ran towards Tyler shoving him harshly across the camp, and slamming him into a tree.

I slammed into Klaus, throwing him off of Tyler, and roared out, "KLAUS! STOP! Don't do this."

"You had your chance to use your big girl words and he's still trying to murder my child." Klaus scorned back at me, "Touch me again and I'll rip both of your arms off."

And with that, he was gone.

 _Come on, mate! Give it a bit more effort! I want to enjoy myself!_

I needed only follow the narcissistic ramblings to find them. By the time I caught up with those harbouring a significant speed advantage over me, Klaus had Tyler by the throat and shoved up against a tree. He snarled in his face, "And thus ends your tedious little life. At least it was brief!"

He jammed his fist into Tyler's chest and grabbed his heart. Tyler cried out in sheer agony.

"NO!" I screamed out and summoned flames into my palms, "DON'T!"

"Sorry, little girl, or what?" Klaus laughed at me and chuckled, "I have my hand grasped around young Tyler's beating heart. I so much as flinch, or squeeze-"

Tyler roared out in sheer pain.

"Please!" I begged him, "PLEASE! You've freaking done enough to him!"

Klaus' face looked a little taken aback as he pondered that notion. He, against all odds and evidence to the contrary, decided that he agreed with me, "I suppose, you are right."

Tyler, gasping for breath, goaded him, "Do it! You're never gonna break me! Only thing you can do is kill me, so go on! Go on, get it over with!"

Klaus paused and chuckled into his face, "Ahhh, you want me to end your suffering, don't you? Hmm? I did break you! I took everything from you, and now you're begging me to sweep away the shards of your shattered little life." He stared at him for a moment, and just when it appeared certain that Klaus was about to kill him, he pulled his empty hand out of his chest and choked Tyler momentarily. He declared, "Death offers more peace than you deserve. It's better to let you live. And each morning, you will wake knowing your wretched existence continues only by my will. Now go, and live the rest of your days knowing that you are nothing to me."

Klaus let him go, and he slumped down to the ground.

"Tyler?" I huffed out, as he struggled to stand up, and then staggered away from me.

I watched his back; I was frozen in place. I couldn't think of anything that would get him to turn around, so I just watched him go. Maybe I was immobilized from the sheer horror of almost witnessing his bloody, gory death first hand, or maybe I was finally seeing everything that stood between us, and I saw that there was no way back. Tyler used to get me, like no one else could, had my back like no one else ever had, and now, he couldn't even look at me.

"Elijah, I get." Klaus sang, "But, that one? Pffft."

* * *

Klaus and I were waiting at the abandoned shack for Elijah and Hayley to return from the wilderness. Once they approached the porch, Klaus shoved a random dead body out in front of them. I looked at him, equally bemused, and wondered where and why and how he'd stashed this wildcard.

"Who is this?" I asked, and was ignored.

"There you are!" Klaus sang to the arrivals, "I see you've found our wandering stray."

"Where's Tyler?" Hayley asked.

"Gone." I said, and then noted her horrified expression and corrected my error, "Not dead gone. Just gone gone."

"That he is." Klaus said, and turned to Hayley, "Perhaps you could shed some light on the situation." He kicked over the dead body, and noted, "This would appear to be the body of a hybrid."

"His name was Dwayne." Hayley explained.

"Well, whoever it was, I didn't sire him." Klaus said, "Any idea how that's possible?"

Hayley stomped towards him, and scorned, "As if you didn't know!"

Elijah held Hayley and her temper back and walked in front of her to protect her from Klaus.

"I'd love to know?" I uttered.

Klaus, unamused by her heated display, scorned, "Ahhh, well aren't you two becoming fast friends? Oh, come on, then. What kind of horrible accusation have you conspired to levy against me?"

"Tyler Lockwood brought Hayley here to test a theory." Elijah explained, "That the blood of her child could be used to sire hybrids. He claims that you knew that. Furthermore, that you intended to use this knowledge to build an army."

Was I surprised? No. A huff of air escaped my chest, and I looked over at Klaus, who now looked rather hurt as well as angered.

"And, of course, you assume it's true. I mean, why else would I show any interest in my own flesh and blood?" Klaus seethed, "A heartbroken little crybaby points his finger at me, and my own brother falls in line, eager to believe it! How quickly you believe the worst, especially when it comes from her."

"Oh, spare me your indignation." Elijah scorned back, "When have you ever demonstrated any kind of concern towards Hayley or her child, beyond your own selfish pursuits? And what was it you once said to me?" He impersonated Klaus, rather excellently, "Every king needs an heir!"

"My big brother." Klaus rasped, "So, you doubt my intentions? Well, I can't say I'm surprised, standing next to the noble Elijah, how can I be anything but the lesser brother? A liar, a manipulator, a bastard."

The two brothers had squared up to each other initially but as Klaus approached Elijah and rabbited on, the disgust and dismay seeped away and he reconsidered his position.

"That's all I am to you, isn't it? And Rebekah." Klaus scorned, "And, judging by the way Hayley hangs on your every word, it's clear she feels the same way!" He paused, looking even more hurt, and said, "No doubt my child will as well."

"Brother, if-" Elijah began.

"We have said all that needs to be said, brother." Klaus interrupted him. He stepped back a few steps, held his arms out in defeat, and declared, "I'll play the role I've been given."

He turned as though he was going to drop his metaphorical mic and walk away, but instead, he spun and flashed into Elijah. He bit down savagely into his neck. Hayley screamed out in shock and stumbled back from them. Klaus wiped his mouth with his hand, and pushed me back harshly as I tried to get past him. He suggested to Elijah and I, "Consider that bite to be my parting gift to you both, as well as the hallucinations and dementia that will shortly follow."

He snatched on to Hayley's wrist, and declared, "Come Little Wolf, let's give the lovers their privacy."

"KLAUS!" Elijah bellowed as Klaus swept them away.


	60. Jaded

**The Bayou - Abandoned Shack**

Elijah deteriorated rapidly as his body lost ground against the venom. We sought refuge in the abandoned shack with no other choice but to wait it out. He went pale, grew to be soaked in sweat and he was clearly miserable. I'd offered him water, but it would not settle. He gagged and coughed at the first sip.

"Forgive me. Please." Elijah rasped, shakily, holding his head in his hands.

"It's okay." I assured him, "Remind me to annihilate your brother once you're healthy."

He groaned. His body slumped, and he quipped, "Yes, remind me to remind you to get in line."

I crouched down before him and I offered my own blood once more, but he grimaced and physically turned his darkening eyes away from me.

"It doesn't have to be like this." I reminded him. Stefan had taken but a taste of my blood back in the day and he had been kicked into over-drive; his senses, his strength, all heightened. He instantly went from running on fumes to...okay, he went back to Ripper Stefan for a little bit, but I didn't even get to that part before Elijah shot me down.

"No. The bite will not kill me." Elijah groaned, and rasped, "Like Niklaus himself, it's more a nuisance than anything."

"You're seriously thinking about Klaus right now?" I asked him.

Elijah sighed deeply, and then posed, "Perhaps I was too willing to condemn him. In the thousand years that we have been together, my brother has committed numerous unspeakable acts. But, then again, so has Rebekah. So have I."

"So did I, this one weekend Hayley and I ditched her spirit quest and went to Cabo." I admitted, and wondered away with my thoughts for a minute.

Elijah stared back at me in confusion.

"Point is...we've all done bad things. Things we are not proud of." I offered, "It's just, most people die before the list gets embarrassing. But, don't for a second compare yourself to Klaus."

Elijah reached out and he caressed my cheek. He brushed a stray hair away from my face and he implored, "Listen to me. Please. This fever will make me unstable. And once the hallucinations begin, I'll start to see things, I won't be able to exercise any restraint or control. You must leave me here."

"I'm not leaving you like this." I told him, firmly.

Elijah dipped in and out of consciousness. He lay flopped on his back, his face buried in the crook of his elbow, on a bed that I presume belonged to the dead hybrid out front. He'd toss and turn restlessly, writhing around, unable to settle or feel comfort in his own skin, and then briefly, there would be nothing. Silence, if not for his laboured breathing.

I'd returned my attention to a shoe box of old photographs that was stuffed behind the couch, and I shuffled my way through them. At first, they were just a distraction, to pass the time, there really wasn't much else to do in here, but the further I rummaged into that dusty box, the more I wondered _why_ these photographs were seemingly long forgotten. The pictures showed a huge family, or...community; people of all ages, at cook outs, playing ball, at house parties. The photographs were happy, fun, and full of life and they weren't super old, maybe 80s-90s. Why didn't one of the many pictured people want these? Why were they stuffed out of sight, in this crappy little house, in the middle of nowhere?

* * *

It was getting late into the afternoon now. I was perched at the edge of the decking, which overlooked the muggy lake, and enjoyed the feeling of the sun beating down on my face. I'd propped the door open with a brick, to let a little breeze into the shack, and mainly so that I could hear Elijah, should he stir. Oh, that he did. He groaned out in agony, and hunched up in the bed. I pushed myself up and rushed back inside the shack.

"It's okay!" I whispered to him, "Elijah? Hey! It's okay! You're okay."

I wrapped around him and placed a hand on his forehead to gauge his temperature. He'd rested for so long, surely we were over the worst of it. Suddenly, it was as though all the lights had blown out in the world, and I was somewhere else. We were there. There was nothing. And then...I don't know where the hell I was. For a brief moment, I considered that Ignatius had tried to do his weird empty white void of nothingness chat again (it was long overdue) and I'd hit 'hang up' accidentally.

I saw a woman, relaxing in a ye-olden bathtub in the center of a room. Only when I saw Elijah emerge from around the corner, from behind the fancy people screens, did I abandon my first theory. It was just like the French Riviera...I felt like I knew this place, this room, this...naked woman. This was definitely Elijah's memory.

"Celeste?" Elijah huffed out in a dazed tone, and he brought us back to the crumbling shack.

I peeled away from him, slipping from his grasp, uncertainly. Elijah turned around, tentatively, suddenly realising that he'd hallucinated, very viscerally, very out loud.

"I'm sorry." Elijah rasped, still clearly muddled, "I-I thought you were someone else-"

"Celeste." I uttered, awkwardly, "Whoever she was, she was smoking hot."

"Did I let you enter my thoughts?" Elijah asked, more himself than me, and he muttered, "I'm not well. I should go. This is-"

"This is fine, Elijah." I assured him, and brought his gaze back to me, "You can't leave. You're sick, I'm taking care of you."

I coaxed him half-way back down but his expression tensed, and his attention shot to the window, as though he sensed something other than crickets chirping out there.

"We're being watched." Elijah rasped, ominously.

I rose sharply and headed for the door. I stepped outside and glanced around until I caught sight of a woman standing several yards away; older than I, long blonde plaited hair, peering from behind a tree. When she saw that I'd clocked her, she ran in the opposite direction and disappeared into the dense wood.

"Hey. Hey!" I barked after her, but she was long gone.

I kicked something on the front porch: a book. I glanced around again, checking there were no other creepy swamp stalkers lurking about, and then picked up the dusty battered book; at least the random woman was on theme.

Elijah had pulled himself up whilst I was gone. He looked as though he were mustering up the energy for that final push off the bed, and presumably to then fight off the assailant? I closed the door behind me, gently, a little charmed by his gallant display.

"There was a woman, across the camp, over by the lake. She bailed." I told him, "But I assume she left this for us."

"What is it?" He asked, breathily.

"A...bible." I muttered, and sat down at the table. I began flicking through the pages.

"For my last rites?" Elijah huffed out.

I smirked, and side-eyed him, before returning to the book. At the back of the book was a list of many, many names and dates of birth.

"You wear what you're thinking and feeling, all over your face. Did you know that?" Elijah said, "What perplexes you?"

I went to him, and I perched on the bed beside him.

"It's a _Labonair_ family history, it goes back generations." I explained, and showed him the latest and final entry on this lengthy family tree.

"Andrea Labonair. Who is she?" Elijah asked.

"6th of June 1991, that's Hayley's birthday." I informed him.

* * *

I read the book in more detail, delving into the scribbled notes in the margins and highlighted passages. My parents were never particularly religious, perhaps due to their frequent dabbling with the supernatural, their family legacy, their freak of a daughter; I couldn't really connect the dots, couldn't discern the importance of these words to the scribbler; but I kept on reading anyway, hoping to at least find out which one of these Labonairs was the scribbler in question.

Elijah rested his head in my lap, and slept for a short while whilst I perused. It wasn't long before he writhed restlessly, clearly hallucinating once more. I didn't want another front row seat so I attempted to slip out from under him, but he suddenly grabbed my wrist harshly, and back we went.

It was the exact same scene as before: Celeste was relaxing in her large bathtub. Elijah, in 19th century finery, entered the room, stage left. This time, we didn't hit stop, the scene played out in full. Celeste playfully threw her sponge at him, and he caught it oh so deftly. She giggled at him, and puffed out her chest so that her breasts dipped out of the water. I didn't know where to look, at Celeste's completely naked body or at Elijah's heart-breakingly smitten face. I opted for the roof.

" _Assistance, please, good sir_." Celeste requested, with a radiant smile.

" _No, I'm much happier taking in such a wondrous view_." Elijah noted, " _It's perfection_."

Pffft. Yeah. If you like that sort of thing...you know, perfectly toned, beautiful-ness. I scoured the walls of the room, and patted them a little, hoping that I'd break the fourth wall, or find an emergency 'eject' button.

" _Your brother is again up to no good. He's challenging the gentry to duels as though they have any chance of a fair fight_." Celeste noted as Elijah took her leg into his hand and aided her bathing.

" _I do grow weary of sacrificing my joy to temper my brother's mischief_." Elijah lamented, " _Surely, you can cast a spell to put him in his place_."

Celeste chuckled melodically, and said, " _It would take a hundred witches to put him in his place. Besides, he only ever listens to you_."

" _Yes. He certainly needs a little discipline_." Elijah said, " _Spanking of some kind is in order. I think I shall need some rehearsal. Come_."

Elijah pulled Celeste's dripping body out of the tub and he kissed her passionately. I raised a hand to my own face, where Elijah was holding on to Celeste and I swore that I felt him there. I closed my eyes, and my entire body was set alight. I felt his hands disappearing down my back and then pulling me up into his embrace.

He dropped me down all of a sudden and we both staggered back into the real world. Elijah shivered and fell back into the bed. The hallucination had merged into reality, into action; I'd been up in his arms, my legs wrapped around his waist, just as Celeste had enjoyed, many moons ago. He ran his hands through his sopping hair and groaned out in pain. He begged me, "Rosanna, please. This fever. My mind is flooded with these torturous memories. You have to leave."

I wanted to say something particularly snotty in retort, along the lines of my own torture 100% swamping his. He was having a fabulous time! But I opted for something more understanding.

"What is your deal?" I asked him, urging him to lie back, careful not to touch him again, "You don't like people taking care of you?"

"There are consequences for those that care." He scorned, painfully, "I will _not_ have you pay that price."

"So, you're having weird, retro sex dreams? Some with a little audience participation." I muttered, and determined, "Get over it, I'm staying."

"Rosanna-" He groaned.

"I'm ignoring you now." I determined, and sat back on the chair beside him, closing my eyes, attempting some rest myself.

After a short pensive pause, Elijah asked me, "Who is Tyler Lockwood to you?"

I peeped one eye open, and found an earnest question. I scoffed, and said, "Okay, that's a strong card to play: awkwardness. But I'm still staying, regardless."

"You saw into my mind." Elijah said.

"I didn't _want_ to." I sang back.

"An ex-boyfriend?" Elijah asked.

"He...is one of my oldest friends. He was probably my best friend for a while, and...he was my...first." I somewhat explained.

"Ah, first love." Elijah lamented.

"I loved him, but...I don't think either of us was _in love_." I tried to explain, for the first time, "Judging on the way that we treated each other."

"You are young." Elijah rasped, "You're not supposed to be so jaded yet. It's supposed to be infinite possibilities, highest hopes, wildest dreams."

"I'm not jaded." I said, "Just...thinking about today."

"You have to forgive me." Elijah muttered.

"Wh-what?" I replied, "Elijah?"

"Celeste. Please." He begged and reached out, with renewed fervor, "Forgive me! I'm sorry."

"ELIJAH!" I screamed but it was too late, we were...somewhere else.

Klaus and another man were standing back to back, in the middle of an expansive open field; revolvers were poised in their hands, prepared for a ye-olden duel. Klaus gave unintelligible orders in French, and they walked away from each other as Klaus counted them down.

 _Huit, sept, six, cinq, quatre, trois, deux._

They spun. They shot. Klaus remained unharmed; the other man flopped down, an instant kill from the shot to the head.

" _Is that it_?" Klaus goaded to his small gathering, " _Is this the best New Orleans has to offer_?"

Someone pottered over and dragged the duelist's corpse over to a pile of bodies several feet away, as though it were nothing more than a sack of grain; compelled or completely desensitized to Klaus? That was the question. Elijah arrived to the field wearing a face of thunder.

" _Brother! Please, this is high folly_." Elijah implored, " _Is it not enough that you have slaughtered dozens in just these past several weeks? Word of a city littered with bodies will surely travel the oceans. Do you want to bring our father upon us?_ "

" _Relax, brother_." Klaus reassured him, coldly, " _I've sent rumor that the bodies are result of the witches seeking blood sacrifice for their rituals_."

The color disappeared from Elijah's face as he huffed out, " _You did what? Have you forgotten? Celeste is one of those that you recklessly point your finger at?_ "

Klaus feigned ignorance in his classic theatrical manner and asked, " _Who's Celeste? Wait..._ " He enjoyed the glare, and the hatred emanating from Elijah for another moment before he declared, " _Oh, yes! The witch you've been knocking around with. Well, fear not. Harlots are like rats in the Quarter. You trip over one every step you take_."

Elijah snatched a revolver from a nearby man and shot Klaus square in the chest with it. He looked down at his bullet wound with nothing but annoyance and he sighed. He glanced around at his audience, hoping to solicit a grain of sympathy or shock from any of them; nothing.

" _You care about her_." Klaus determined, calling after his brother, " _Well, that is unfortunate. I hear they're rounding up the towns witches as we speak_."

Elijah stopped and he screamed out, and we were back in the shack. He launched himself at me. He slammed my body down into the rickety old chair, and it shattered from the impact. He grabbed me by the neck. I blinked and was pinned down against the wall. I tried to scream out beneath his crushing grip.

"Niklaus! I'll kill you, you bastard." Elijah bellowed.

I punched at him wildly as I fought for air. He was too strong. Too fast. He slammed one fist down beside my head, and the other pinned underneath his choking arm. I didn't think anymore. I was in pure survival mode. I set my entire body on fire, repelling him back, in sheer shock, snatched up a fragment of the chair and staked him in the chest, hard. As he desiccated over, and grasped weakly for my face I knew that he was back, he wasn't hallucinating anymore. I came back. I felt a rush of guilt flood on through, decimating the rage in one fell swoop.

"No!" I whispered, "No, no, no! Elijah?! I'm sorry. I'm so sorry!"

The dust settled and a woman cleared her throat in the doorway. I snatched Elijah's incapacitated body back, defensively. She was the runaway, from before. She held a stake in one hand, which she propped into the back of her waistband.

"I thought you needed my help." She said, with a small smile, "My mistake."

* * *

It was dark now. The woman invited me out to a campfire that she set up with ease. This was clearly her stomping ground.

"I'm sure you got questions." She said.

"Uh...only thousands of them." I replied, "Like, who are you? Why were you watching us? Where the hell is everyone? The people in those pictures? That book? And, well, if the people in that book really are Hayley's family, then...what happened to them?"

She smiled warmly, and she nodded as though I'd passed some test. She explained, "I'm Eve. I'm watching you because you brought two Originals to Werewolf Country, which is pretty much the same reason why everybody else skedaddled. If you wanna know what happened to the people in that family tree, I'll sum it up nice and quick: Marcel happened."

"What did he do?" I asked.

"He killed most of them." She said, "Later, the descendants of the ones who dodged death, he strong-armed a witch into putting a curse on them."

"What kind of curse?" I asked.

"Swap nature around, inside out. Made it so their natural state is wolves. They only turn back human on the full moon." She said, and then dipped her shirt down to show an old burn mark on the back of her shoulder, "We're hunted by the marks we carry, that's why I got rid of mine. I didn't wanna get found out. I suggest that Hayley does the same." I looked back at her, incredulously, and she admitted, "Yes, I followed your last stumble across our lines too. Imagine my surprise seeing Andrea Labonair helping out a French Quarter witch. Hmm. Got me thinking, she doesn't know anything, does she? She can't."

"She doesn't." I said, "But she wants to, desperately."

"She comes back, _alone_ , and she will." Eve determined shortly, and shot a tired glare towards the man who had now appeared in the doorway to the shack.

Eve walked away from the campfire without another word.

"Good evening." Elijah said, and handed over the leg of the shattered chair, "Think I might have something which belongs to you."

"Are you okay?" I asked him, and tossed the leg into the fire.

"The wound is healed, the fever is broken, but no, I can't say that I'm okay." Elijah determined, in a pained tone, "I hurt you."

"And I hurt you." I muttered back, and suggested, "Let's get out of here. Please."

* * *

 **Mikaelson Mansion - Driveway**

Every time that I die, and I am reborn among the ashes, I remember everything, verbatim. I don't like to remember the following conversation, but it is an integral turning point in my story, and thus...the moment that Elijah broke my heart, technically, chronologically came next, even though the true hurt and pain and fallout of his actions came much later for me.

We sat inside Elijah's car in the driveway, both of us not yet ready to return to the plantation house. I thanked him awkwardly for the ride.

He smiled, weakly, and declared, "I'm sorry that I hurt you. I would never want that."

"Elijah, tell me what happened to Celeste." I interrupted him, with about as much tact as he'd thrown out earlier, asking about Tyler.

"That is not important." Elijah stated.

"It is important." I said, "Thousand years of memories and that's what breaks through your fever brain? I wanna know. Show me."

Elijah did not look at me. He reluctantly placed his hand against my temple, brushed his hand through my hair and opened his mind to allow me into the memory.

Elijah rushed into the bathroom that I was well acquainted with by now, but the mood I'd wandered through before had dropped off the ledge and completely shattered. Celeste was completely submerged under the water, her body sunken down to the bottom of the tub. I felt my breath hitch in my throat. There was no jealousy, not anymore, just fear, and then second-hand heartbreak. Elijah desperately tried to save her. He pulled her limp, lifeless body out of the water, but it was too late. There was nothing that he could do. He was powerless. She was dead. Elijah began to sob violently over her lifeless body and then he cut the memory off. I'd got the picture.

He pulled his hand away and he still couldn't look at me. He said, "It was a cruel and bloody time to be a witch...courtesy of my wonderful brother."

He got out of the car.

I followed him out, and asked, "She died because of Klaus?"

Elijah stopped and he shook his head. He turned back and told me, sadly, "She died because of me. Because I cared too deeply for her. I had allowed my brother to slip through my grasp. I loosened the reins while Celeste consumed my every moment. I had abandoned him in the name of my own happiness. Celeste payed the price."

I shook my head in confusion, and I replied, "I don't get it. Why are you here? Why are you trying to put together your family when it's so clear that one part of it is broken?"

Elijah explained, "To me, the very definition of the word "broken" suggests that something can be fixed. I have a whole eternity to accomplish one single task: my brother's salvation. If I surrender this, then tell me- what value would I be to my family? To myself? To you? To that unborn child? You've seen what happens, and yet you stay."

"I'm not willing to give up on something that brings me joy just because it _might_ go wrong one day, or I might lose it." I shot back, "That is not living, and I know loss, Elijah. I'm a big girl. I shouldn't be. I should be rainbows, and puppies, and all that other stuff, but I'm not. I can handle myself."

"You asked me before about something of a sire bond existing between us, and you were correct to ponder so." Elijah said, "Original vampires cannot be compelled. You can. By me."

"What are you talking about?" I asked him.

"The first of your kind may have created vampires, but you came about many years after. It's not a successive sire bond in that sense. It does not follow the same principles." He explained, "I can hurt you. I did. Today. I did not know it at the time, but I suppose I did compel you to stand still that night, and wait for me, and you did."

"Why are you telling me this?" I asked him.

"Davina has assured me, that you are now free. The last link has been broken." Elijah said.

My heart began to quicken, and I rasped, "Elijah-You wouldn't-"

Elijah caressed my face, and he told me, "It is time for you to go home. You're done. I will tell Hayley all we learned today, and you will forget today. I want you to forget all about us. Forget it all. Every touch. Every glance. Every skip of your heart. I heard every one. I want you to forget the way I lit up whenever you entered a room, any time you made me laugh, or surprised me, or gave me yet one more reason to believe that happiness could truly be mine, if I just gave in to a beautiful dream. And that is what you are, and must always be to me, Rosanna. I don't want you to take on this family and make it your burden. Loving me is a death sentence. We have taken enough from you as it is. And I will not allow history to repeat itself. You saw it. I made a promise to protect you, always, and of that, I will keep my word." A tear strolled down his cheek as he declared, "I want you to know only happiness, and I know now that can never be with me."

"That's enough, Elijah." Rebekah said, tersely, from the top of the steps.

Elijah looked over at her, and beckoned her forward, requesting, "Ask her."

Rebekah asked me, "Do you know who Elijah Mikaelson is?"

"He is an Original Vampire." I told her, with a shrug, "That's all I know."

"Why are you in New Orleans?" She asked.

"I-I was linked to Hayley. I'm not anymore." I told her and then thought about it for a moment before determining, "I should leave New Orleans. It is time for me to go home."

I walked away from them, with a new intention burying its way deep into my core. I needed to go home, back to Mystic Falls; my time here was up.

"You are going to live to regret that." Rebekah said, gravely, "Any fool could see how she feels for you."

"If she lives. If she finds happiness. I won't regret it for one second." Elijah determined, breathily.

"She was happy here." Rebekah muttered and sauntered away from him.


	61. As You Were

**Mystic Grill**

My elongated summer of travelling and drinking my way across the south with Hayley had finally come to an end, and I was headed back home, back to school (more than a little late), back to my family, my friends, and back to...normality. Yeah, even under the fog of compulsion, that idea seemed a little off.

Home was not a simple answer for me. The Gilbert Family Home was demolished and cleared up in my absence, but it was not reconstructed given the suspicious time frame of the two fires, and then when Jeremy miraculously reappeared in the land of the living, he had to use the fire and his supposed death as just a stupid prank and a little teenage rebellious angst. He played the dead parents card and narrowly avoided expulsion, getting a court-ordered counselor instead. Elijah was, of course, completely wiped from my memory, along with his very vacant apartment above the town square. That left...the Salvatore Boarding House, which I found to be completely empty.

Damon was the first to reply to my 'where the hell is everyone?' text with a snarky 'who dis?' quickly followed by 'grill, little little G!'. He had his head slumped down on the counter of the bar, with more than a few empty bottles of bourbon littered around him. Matt and Jeremy were clearing up Damon's...drowning of his sorrows; Matt embraced me tightly and welcomed me back home.

"I was starting to forget what you looked like." Jeremy quipped and pulled me into a warm embrace.

"What the hell is this?" I asked them both, over Damon, "What is that smell?"

"I dumped Elena. That smell is sadness." Damon groaned.

I shot a confused look at the boys, and asked, "You-you dumped Elena? Why?!"

"Exactly. Who spends two years pining after a girl, to just dump her?" Matt scoffed.

Damon grumbled, and without moving a muscle, he muttered, "I told her I was bad for her. I'm a bad person. I'm choosing to let her go."

I dipped my head down to get into his eye line and I told him, "That sounds like a good, selfless person."

Damon peeped one eye open, squinted and then raised his head. He poured himself a shot of bourbon, and Matt yanked the almost empty bottle from his grasp.

"Well, that's progress." Jeremy muttered to me, "Keep going, we gotta open up soon."

"I bet it was just a fight." I offered, "And I bet that she is just as mopey as you are."

Damon's phone rang: Stefan. He grumbled inarticulately again and declined the call. Suddenly, my phone rang: Stefan.

"Hello, Stefan!" I sang into the call, "If you're looking for your mopey brother, look no further."

"Hey, you're back, right?" Stefan asked, hurriedly, "You're with Damon?"

"Oh yeah. He's right here, drinking away his feelings, but he's making a floppy...now angry...hand gesture, I don't think he wants to talk to you at the moment." I informed him, heard a tense rebuttal, and then asked, "Yeah, what-what's wrong?"

Damon's head peeped up again.

* * *

 **Salvatore Boarding House**

Stefan's news had revived Damon's spirits immediately. All was well in his world again: Katherine Pierce was upstairs in a guest bedroom with a sympathetic Stefan by her side...and she was dying...of old age! It was ludicrous. It was crazy. And it was music to Damon's ears. He poured out multiple shots for the four of us.

"Rule number one!" Damon declared, "Name the worst thing Katherine Pierce has ever done. Rule number two: Toast to the glory of her impending death. Rule number three: If you come across something that's worse, which you will, repeat rules one and two." He awaited the halfhearted nods and then said, "She pretended to be buried in a tomb for 145 years, while I waited for her lying ass."

Damon picked up a shot and knocked it back. He paused and posed, "Wait...does that beat pretending to be Elena and kissing me on the front porch of your old house?"

"I don't think so." Jeremy said.

"I don't think so either. Damn." Damon scorned and took another shot, before passing the torch on to Matt, "Quarterback, go."

"Uh..." Matt muttered.

"Think on that." Damon scoffed, and passed a shot glass to Jeremy, "Little Gilbert."

"She fed me to Silas and I died." Jeremy replied, flatly.

My eyes widened at the memory, and I took a shot with him. Yeah, that was definitely the worst thing that Katherine has ever done to me...Elena too.

"Doozy." Damon declared.

Jeremy took up another shot, and added, "Then, she made me crash my car into a pole and left me for dead...again."

"Double doozy. Drink!" Damon demanded.

Jeremy took his shot and then passed another on to me. I gave my brother a concerned look before I took it, which told him that I'd definitely be pressing him for that full story later. You were left for dead...again, and I was...partying.

"She...made Aunt Jenna stab herself in the stomach _and_ she cut off Uncle John's fingers." I toasted.

"He might have deserved that." Jeremy laughed and clinked shot glasses with me.

"My sister's dead because of her." Matt said, firmly.

"Yes she is...because I wouldn't have even been in town to turn Vicki into a murderous vampire if I wasn't trying to get Katherine out of a tomb she wasn't in!" Damon declared and then put a shot into all of our hands and demanded, "Group shot!"

Bonnie, Caroline and Elena sauntered into the room as we drank in unison, shaking their heads in feigned disapproval.

"Seriously?" Elena laughed at us.

"Elena...we're, were just...uh..." Matt muttered.

"I know what you're doing!" Elena said, and pointed at Jeremy and I, "You're both cut off."

She made her way around to me and I rose to embrace her tightly. She whispered that she was so glad that I was back here, even if I did smell like a bar. The room then went silent and palpably awkward as Elena and Damon exchanged a sheepish look with one another. Elena broke the tension by taking the shot of bourbon out of Damon's hand, and she declared, "If anyone is drinking to Katherine's last days, it's going to be me, the one she impersonated...repeatedly."

Elena downed the shot and the girls came around, settling down into the action.

"My Grams died trying to close a tomb she wasn't in." Bonnie said, and drank.

"Tyler's werewolf curse got triggered because of her." Caroline said.

"Klaus followed her to Mystic Falls and because of that, we lost Jenna." Elena said.

"And Alaric." Damon added.

The extent to which Katherine's poison had spread throughout our entire group was mind-blowing. It was heart-breaking, and enraging, and baffling. But...it also unified us in this unfortunate way, like a long line of domino's clattering down into one another; she never hurt just one of us, we all felt it, every time.

"We're going to need more booze." Matt laughed, and disappeared to find another bottle.

"She tried to kill me at least twice." Elena said.

"She did kill me!" Caroline reminded everyone, and then mused, "Although I'm weirdly better off."

* * *

 **The Salvatore Estate - Grounds**

Stefan came downstairs a short while after to break up the party. He took a full shot glass from his brother, and he delivered a poignant toast to an innocent girl that was shunned by her family, and was forced to lie, manipulate, and do whatever she had to do to survive, for five hundred years. He drank to the survivor that was Katherine Pierce. We all pursed our lips, squinted back, gaped, looked at him like he was bananas, or straight up exposed his sexual laundry in retort. Damon obviously opted for the latter: Stefan and Katherine had slept together, and now that he was brainwashed, all past evils were null and void.

The news went down like a lead balloon, cue more scrunching up of bodies, looking at walls blankly, and a chorus of "WHAT?!". Caroline whined and apologised for forgetting to tell Elena as she was kidnapped and held hostage. I snorted on my drink. Caroline whined and apologised for not telling me about Elena, as I was busy gallivanting elsewhere.

Nadia arrived into the bustle, unannounced. She is the...daughter of Katherine. Yes. What remained of my mind was blown to teeny bits. She had found a way to save her mother's dwindling life, and she needed our help. She was met with resounding silence, and bottoms firmly glued to seats. Damon bombarded the room with his fierce opposition, ensuring we all stuck to the party line: Katherine bad. Katherine die. It was completely unnecessary. No one moved an inch. That is until the apple was proven to fall not so far from the diabolical tree.

"I figured as much." Nadia declared to the unwelcoming room, "Which is why I found that old safe your brother spent the summer drowning in and buried it on this property with your friend Matt inside of it." We moved. Nadia placed Matt's Gilbert ring on the table and added, "Oh – without this."

The Salvatore Estate was expansive. Nadia took Elena and Stefan for a magical mystery tour whilst the rest of us were supposed to just sit on our hands and await a text with an exact location. We didn't fancy taking our chances with Matt's ever-depleting air supply, so Caroline, Bonnie, Jeremy and I decided to search the grounds in the mean time.

"I don't see any freshly dug ground." Jeremy said.

"This property is massive." Bonnie sighed.

"Hello? Is no one going to comment on the fact that Stefan slept with Katherine?" Caroline whined, "I mean, that's kind of a big deal."

"It doesn't matter." Jeremy said, "We've all slept with our fair share of bad choices."

"Preach." I scoffed, and quietly pushed Kol back into his box.

"No offense taken." Bonnie laughed at him.

"No. Obviously not you." Jeremy assured her.

It took a second, but Caroline and I both jerked to a halt. Bonnie. And...my brother?!

"Bonnie Bennett!" Caroline squealed, and waggled her finger around, "Wait, did you two?"

Bonnie and Jeremy looked at each other but said nothing. Bonnie's expression was enough to confirm Caroline's suspicions.

"And you didn't tell me?!" She whined.

"I-I didn't think I was obligated." Bonnie said, and shrugged.

"Of course you were obligated!" Caroline squealed, "You're my best friend! Oh my god. Does Elena know that her little brother-"

Jeremy covered my ears, theatrically, and I burst out laughing. Bonnie thankfully interrupted Caroline before she could finish that sentence and she roared out, "NO! No. No." I batted away Jeremy's attempt to defend the innocence of his baby sister (baby, by all of three minutes).

"Oh, scandalous sex!" Caroline declared, "Even better! God, how am I the only person on this planet that isn't having scandalous sex? I mean, even-"

"Why don't we all split up and think about that?" I proposed, very loudly, and scuttled off into the woods before Caroline could conjure up any more entries from the 'stories siblings really don't want to shoot the shit over' list.

"YEP!" Bonnie chipped in and disappeared with Jeremy.

"Good idea!" Caroline sang, behind us, "We'll cover more ground that way!"

* * *

 **Salvatore Boarding House - Lounge**

Matt, Bonnie, Jeremy and I were hanging out in the lounge together, catching up, and cringing at Matt's buried alive tale, as brief as it was. Rebekah, of all people, was the one to come to Matt's rescue, and then spirit away into the night. We were still deciding whether the lack of air had messed with Matt's head, but he swears blind it was her. A little later on, Caroline scurried back inside the house, looking rather disheveled.

"Hey." Caroline squealed out to us, and scuttled over.

"Hey." Matt questioned, "Where have you been?"

Caroline plucked a leaf from her hair, pinged it away, and zipped her jacket right up. She muttered, "In the woods...I got lost. Heh heh heh." She caught all four of the confused and suspicious looks sent her way and then she asked, much louder, "So, what are we doing?"

"We are waiting for Katherine to bite it." Jeremy informed her.

"So...this anchor thing..." I resumed asking Bonnie, for I was still trying to wrap my head around everything that I'd missed this summer, "Does that mean you'll be able to, like... _feel_ Katherine's death?"

"I think so..." Bonnie replied, thoughtfully, "I mean, she's human, but she's also a doppelganger...and a traveler, apparently."

"So, who else do you see over there?" Matt asked her, "Anybody I know?"

"I see lots of people. My grams, the other witches...Vicki." Bonnie said, "I just don't talk about it, you know...because it's just…"

Bonnie's gaze drifted over to a random corner in the lounge, and after a moment, she chuckled, seemingly to herself. I caught Jeremy's eye, and he didn't seem at all bothered by it, or concerned that his girlfriend just cracked right in front of us.

"What's happening?" Matt asked, tentatively.

"She's here." Bonnie told him, she paused, and then relayed, "She said she loves you."

Bonnie's attention drifted once more, and then she burst out laughing at the vacant space before her.

"Wait...What's happening?" Matt asked, intently, "What am I missing?"

"Me." Tyler said, from the doorway.

The room grew super quiet as the two exes exchanged glances, both taken off guard at one another's presence.

"Tyler." Caroline huffed out.

"Rebekah says to tell you that I'm her parting gift." Tyler informed Matt.

Matt busted out a huge grin and embraced his best friend heartily. He laughed and asked us all if that was enough proof for us, another witness to Rebekah's random drop-in?

"Hey, Care." Tyler whispered, and Caroline awkwardly nodded in reply.

"Hey." I greeted Tyler warmly, and embraced him, "Welcome home."

I couldn't remember the last time that I'd seen Tyler, it must have been back at my house, just before he went on the run from Klaus. It was so long ago. I was so happy to see him in one piece; I held on to him tightly. He stiffened in my arms, and eventually hugged me back, uttering, "Uh...yeah."

"Are you okay?" I asked him, quietly.

"Are...you?" He scoffed, incredulously.

* * *

I was stood out on the balcony of my new bedroom, overlooking the expansive grounds below, quietly sipping on a glass of wine. A little breeze rustled my hair, and brushed against my cheek.

"I'm not going to let you hurt Tyler." I said, tilting my head to the side to now see Klaus resting against the balcony railing beside me.

" _That_ is a closed chapter." He rasped, and shrugged, "I got what I wanted."

"Oh, wow, that's it? You've gone soft in your old age." I said.

"I'm all about the forgiveness, love." Klaus said, with a smirk, and he clinked his glass of bourbon gently against mine, "But truth be told, returning Tyler to Mystic Falls was Rebekah's idea, a grand gesture for her love, not mine."

"What do you want, Klaus?" I asked, coldly, already tired of the cordial charade.

Klaus raised a brow, and he adjusted his position to a more casual, open one. He pulled a face, and he noted, "Nothing. Like I said, my trip to Mystic Falls has satisfied me, but there is just one last niggling curiosity I wish to settle before I depart."

"And what might that be?" I asked, flatly.

"You left New Orleans awfully suddenly, without so much as a whisper to Hayley...your best and closest friend...who misses you to a baffling degree, might I add." He said.

"Hayley can take care of herself." I replied.

"She can't turn until the child is born. I have every living Mikaelson watching her like a hawk, and still she finds herself falling in and out of trouble like it's going out of fashion." Klaus said, "I thought the two of you were friends. I was led to believe she saved your life or something?"

"I can't die." I reminded him.

"Perfect." Klaus cheered, "Just what one looks for in a glorified bodyguard."

"I'm sorry, it's your child, it's _your_ problem. I'm just the fun aunt." I told him, in no uncertain terms, "I will not take on the burden of the Mikaelson family, and make it my own."

"Ah. Very precise phrasing." Klaus noted, "Hmm. That is a neat little trick."

"What are you talking about?" I asked him.

"Elijah." Klaus said.

"Your brother?" I said.

Klaus had an almost tickled expression, and he took a long intake of breath before he said, "I'm sure he has his reasons. Farewell, Rosanna. Forget this conversation. As you were, love."


	62. No Harm Done

**Mystic Beans Cafe - Noon**

I checked my phone once again: no new messages, nothing from Elena. We'd made loose plans to get breakfast that morning, just the two of us, and to catch up properly. But she had totally bailed. She'd been AWOL all night, her bed was all made up, never slept in, and no one could get a hold of her. At first I thought maybe spending the night in her ex-boyfriend's house that we all sort of now lived in too, wasn't for her anymore, and I was only a little annoyed that she hadn't left a forwarding address to Caroline's or Bonnie's, but as I went around and collected up all of the identical responses (no, I haven't seen/spoken to her), I really started to worry.

"Elena, I have been calling you all morning. You can clearly see that. So, where the hell are you? Respond to at least one of us!" I informed her voicemail, "Also, while we're at it, my sincerest apologies for doing this exact same thing to you and Jeremy last summer. It really sucks. Point made. If that's...what you're doing? Just call me back, okay?"

One more step and BOOF!

"Blaaaah." I squealed out, and scrambled to catch my phone and protect my coffee from splattering to the ground. I prioritized my beverage and my phone danced across the sidewalk; I physically cringed at the sound. I had turned the street corner and slammed straight into...someone...uh, really good-looking, and smoldery and uh, yeah; nothing much else fired in the old brain in that moment.

"Watch where you're going, you..." He grunted and then he muttered, " _You_."

He picked my cell-phone up from the ground, and brushed it off.

"Yeah. Sorry, _me_ with the uh, burdened brain." I babbled.

"No harm done, love." He said, and handed the phone back cordially.

He looked at me, right in the eye, for another beat before pulling a small smile and then sauntering away. I watched him walk away for a little bit, before returning to my day. Another glance over my shoulder, and he was gone. I thought about what had just happened, the neurons started firing back up again. Watch where I'm going, me...me? Did he know me? I struggled to place the man. Where the hell did I know him from?

When my phone started jingling a few steps later, I answered it feverishly, "Matt? Hi. Any word from Elena?"

"No, I haven't spoken to her yet, sorry." Matt said, "Look, uh, I'm actually calling about Tyler."

"Tyler?" I asked, quickly, eager to keep the line open for my sister's call, "What about him?"

"Okay, I don't know how to help him, if I don't know what's wrong with him." Matt explained, and he asked, "What the hell happened to him down in New Orleans?"

"Um...I don't know." I said, and shrugged as though he could see me do so, "I didn't see him there."

"He said something half-assed about gumbo and Originals, but that's all I got, so I figured you were the one to ask." Matt said.

"I'm sorry. I have no idea what happened to him. Hayley never mentioned him. Um...we were looking for her family, and we never crossed paths." I said, "I'm sorry I can't be any more help."

"It's okay." Matt said, "Maybe it'll blow over, you know what he's like. I'm throwing a welcome home party for him tonight, up at his house, you'll be there right? I've been saying anytime after 8."

"Yeah. I'll be there. Let me know if you hear from Elena."

* * *

 **Tyler's Homecoming Party - Lockwood Manor - 21:30**

"Why so glum?" Stefan asked and passed over a beer, "I thought that was my thing?"

"Promise not to think I'm crazy." I asked of him, and accepted the drink.

"Okay." Stefan drawled, with a small smile, "Promise to...try."

"I spent all day worrying and thinking that Elena was gonna turn up dead in a ditch somewhere, and she just rolled her eyes and totally blew me off right now." I told him, "So, now I'm racking my brain, trying to think on what the hell I've done to her. I've been back what, all of two days? How am I getting iced out already?"

"You're not the only one." Stefan assured me, somewhat, "She's being funny with Caroline, too. And she just told me that she wants to drop off flowers to Katherine's burial site."

"Okay..." I muttered, "That's...weird."

"Agreed. So, what's next, Crazy-pants?" Stefan asked and took a cool sip of his beer. I side-eyed him, and he shot back with, "That's clearly not all of it."

"Okay, last night, Tyler came back and it was so incredibly awkward and silent. And I get that Caroline and Tyler broke up, but...he was really weird with me too. He's literally only said 'uh. yeah.' to me since I got back and his hug was all...scrunched up. Like, do I smell or something?!"

"I will be right back." Stefan said suddenly, and walked away me, through the crowd and towards the den.

"Wh-Stefan? Are you for real?" I hissed and scurried after him, really hoping that he was doing a bit.

"Don't take another step, Caroline." Tyler bellowed from inside the den.

Oh. Actual drama. It wasn't smelly old me.

Caroline sighed and she insisted, "We were just-"

"I said LEAVE!" Tyler roared back, intensely.

His eyes flashed a telling amber, and he bared his teeth. Caroline staggered backwards in terror. Stefan flashed across the room, into Tyler and shoved him up against the wall. He scowled into his face, "You're drunk!"

Tyler fought against Stefan's grip and scorned back at him, "Get your hands off me!"

"What's the matter with you?" Stefan implored.

"You don't know?" Tyler scoffed and threw a disgusted look onto Caroline, ensuring that he caught his words cutting down as deep as possible. He seethed, "She screwed Klaus."

The words scraped their way out, and then hung in the air like a foul stench. Was that the...the New Orleans Originals thing I wondered. Stefan loosened his grip and he looked back at Caroline, unable to taper his disbelief. She ran her hands through her hair, desperately, and then she left the room before she burst into tears in front of us. Stefan reined the look of disbelief back in and returned to Tyler. He then swung his arm back and punched Tyler right in the mouth.

"You know, drunk or not, she doesn't deserve that!" Stefan hissed, and disappeared with me, to find Caroline.

* * *

 **Lockwood Manor - 00:45**

"Why are you still here?" Tyler scorned at me.

I knew that the scorn was definitely mine, given that I was the only one rattling around on this floor. Matt and I had split up after the last of the drunkards had trickled out or moved on to the next party, and we did a sweep of each floor. We didn't want Tyler to wake up to a total trash heap, given the night he'd had. Tyler had passed out upstairs, after drinking himself stupid.

"Matt asked for a hand." I told him, quietly, dismissing his clearly super-drunken ass.

"I don't get you." Tyler scoffed and sauntered his way over to me.

I glared back at him, and tossed the trash bag down for a minute.

"What's there to get? I'm your friend, Tyler, so I am staying behind, and I'm picking up some of the trash from potentially _the_ worst welcome home party I've ever been to." I ranted, "So, shut up, and don't say anything else, unless it's thank you."

"Thank you." Tyler said, snottily, and popped another cup into the trash bag, "You don't have to do that, it'll take all night. This is a big-ass house. I live in a freaking mansion. Lucky, lucky me! My parents are dead, the girl I love slept with my nemesis and I have absolutely no idea what I'm gonna do with the rest of my life, which -get this- lasts forever! But I got a big-ass empty trashed house."

Matt appeared in the doorway, likely drawn to Tyler's bellowing monologue, and he asked, "Why don't we get out of it, for a while, you know, just go somewhere and be anywhere but here?"

"What the hell happened to you?" Tyler asked me, ignoring Matt.

"What the hell happened to YOU?!" I snapped back.

"Klaus put me through Hell in New Orleans. You know that?! He crushed me, and just when I thought it was over, that he couldn't destroy anything else, or do anything worse…" Tyler scorned.

"Look, I'm sorry about Caroline-" I said.

"UGH. Why did you even help her?! Your savior complex is that damn strong?" Tyler barked back, "She is literally carrying the spawn of Satan!"

"What? Hayley?" I whined, "She made a mistake, Ty."

"She's still making the same mistake!" Tyler argued.

"She's my friend."

"If that's who you count as a 'friend', then, thanks, but I'm all good. I don't need you." Tyler scoffed, "You shouldn't have come back here. You already chose your side."

"What the hell are you talking about?!" I called after him, as he stormed out of the room.

"I've got it." Matt whispered to me, and marched after him.

* * *

 **Salvatore Boarding House - 08:30**

I staggered down the stairs that morning, sleepily, and froze at the breeze brushing against my skin. The front door was wide open. Damon's car was crashed into the pillar outside. You could follow the path of destruction all the way through the foyer and into the lounge where Damon could be heard, snoring away. I carefully danced around the broken bottles, and planter, and whisky glass fragments that littered the floor. Someone flashed in front of me and held me back. It was...the coffee house guy!

"Careful, love!" He rasped, and smirked down at me, "Mind the mess. Things got a little out of hand last night...good thing you sleep like a log."

"What happened to the car?" I asked him, and stepped out of his still-lingering grasp.

"Ah." He smirked, and quipped, "I'm a little out of practice. Almost ended up in the damn foyer."

"Huh." I hummed.

"Unless she means Aaron?" Damon groaned and arose from his slumber groggily, cricking all of his hungover bones.

"Who?" I dared to ask.

"The dead guy in his trunk." Stefan said curtly, as he sauntered through the front door.

"Damon-" I groaned and flapped my arms, incredulously.

"We hunted him down, and I ripped his throat out. Yeah." Damon admitted, in a blase fashion, "I just figured it was time to shove the last branch of the Whitmore family tree into the...wood chipper."

He smirked, and waited for even the slightest quiver of a smile. He sighed, as though he were just as disappointed in the both of us and took another swig from one of the remaining intact bottles of bourbon.

"So, Elena breaks up with you, and your first instinct is to go on a killing spree?" Stefan posed to his brother, "Could you be any more predictable?"

"It was _my_ idea if it makes you feel any better." My savior piped up from behind him, and he extended his hand to Stefan, "Enzo. Remember? We met when-"

"-when you were trying to tear Damon's head off. Yeah. I remember." Stefan said, and turned back to his brother, sharply, "So, what, you guys are old pals again, murder buddies, is that it?"

"Oh, you know how it goes. I mean, I left him for dead, he tried to kill me, we worked things out. You spend 5 years with someone in a dungeon, you have a pretty unbreakable bond." Damon explained and handed the bottle over to his friend, over his brother's shoulder.

I had clearly missed something major here...again!

"Say, you haven't heard from Dr. Wes Maxfield by any chance?" Enzo asked Stefan and I, "Bloke's next on the Augustine hit list, and he's a slippery little devil."

"No." I tersely informed Enzo's now militant gaze. I had no idea who that man was.

"Is that the plan?" Stefan asked Damon, "Kill off Augustine and then go back to your sadistic, psychotic old self?"

"I happen to like my old sadistic self, Stefan. In fact, I miss that guy. That guy was dumb enough to try and change himself to get a girl." Damon chuckled.

"Hmm." Stefan hummed, unimpressed.

"So, get another hobby, brother, because I'm not in the mood to be saved." Damon declared, and winked at me, "You too, Judgy!"

"What do you say?" Enzo declared and slapped Damon heartily on the arm, "Shall we get you a new hobby? Golf...scrap-booking?"

"Scrap-booking." Damon grinned in delighted agreement.

"Come on, Damon." Stefan implored, "You're better than this."

"On the contrary, brother. I'm better _like_ this." Damon shot back and then swaggered away to play with his new friend.

"Come on." Stefan whispered to me, and we left them to it.

"Who's the new guy?" I asked once we were out of earshot of the two stooges.

"Enzo? Annoying, but not important." Stefan said, "It's bad enough Damon is spiraling, we could do without a lackey in his ear, egging him on. I'll handle him." Stefan stopped intimating the game plan and asked, "You okay? You look like you're somewhere else."

"Did I...did I tell you why I came back to Mystic Falls?" I asked him, abruptly.

"No. You just turned up one day." Stefan told me, "You said you'd be back for your Senior Year, and when you missed the first few weeks we all assumed you skipped off into the sunset with Elijah. No?"

I trusted Stefan. He had my back more times than I could count, and he had no reason to lie to me. But this...was frustration like I'd never felt before, and I didnt understand the words that he was saying, like I was staring at a test I hadn't revised for, hopelessly clueless on what to do next, and just willing the answer to come out of nothing. It would not come.

"Why does everyone keep on mentioning that name to me like it's...supposed to mean something?" I asked him, earnestly.

"Are you serious?" Stefan asked, suddenly looking really concerned, "Ro. You-you don't remember him?"

I shook my head once.

"That's...not okay." He rasped and he stepped closer towards me. He looked deep into my eyes and he asked, "Why don't you remember Elijah Mikaelson?"

"Elijah Mikaelson is an Original Vampire. He's looking after Hayley. She's his family now." I informed him, unconsciously.

"Who compelled you to forget about him?" Stefan asked.

"Elijah Mikaelson is an Original Vampire. That's all I know about him." I replied succinctly.

Stefan tried a few more iterations before conceding. He suggested that the reason he couldn't break through the compulsion was because it was carried out by a higher vampire. Either Klaus, Elijah, or Rebekah Mikaelson had compelled away my memory, and sent me back home.

"Hayley wants me to come to this big reunion, for her long lost family." I told him, "I'm going to get some answers of my own."

"Okay. I'll get Caroline to work her magic, cover you." Stefan said, "Do you want me to come with you?"

"I think you have enough on your plate, here." I said.

"Alright. If you're sure. Just...be careful." He said.


	63. I Trusted You

**Mikaelson Mansion - Kitchen**

Hayley had left me in charge of the kitchen whilst she disappeared upstairs to get changed for her party. I was responsible for keeping an eye on the craw-fish and the gumbo and a million other dishes I'd never even attempted before in my life. Admittedly, my bar was pretty low, anything above grilled cheese was way out of my league.

"You sure you wanna leave me in charge of this?" I hollered, knowing fine that even with her super-sensitive wolf-hearing she was too many walls away to hear me. I muttered under my breath, "I have no idea what I'm doing!"

I turned to disturb something else with a wooden spoon and jumped at the sight of a blonde, buff, shirtless man standing in the entryway to the kitchen. He was leant casually against the door-frame with a tight smirk, watching me struggle. He was just watching me now, standing there, staring back at his very shirtless appearance. I eventually babbled, "Uh. Hi. Hello."

Rebekah sauntered into the kitchen, hissing into her phone, "So help me God, Marcel, if you don't call me back with an update, I will kill you myself!" She followed my startled gaze over to the stranger, and asked me, "Is this one of them? I was expecting someone...furrier."

"You're one of _them_ , aren't you?" He asked her, "An Original?"

"Yes. You might want to say that with some more respect." Rebekah replied and then took the wooden spoon out of my hand, and scorned, "You had _one_ job. Stir!"

"I-I suppose you'll be wanting Hayley." I said, awkwardly.

He didn't move from the doorway as I attempted to pass him. Instead, he leaned in closer and he said, "Or I could just talk to you. I'm Oliver. I didn't catch your name."

"Rosie." I said and extended my hand to him.

"Hayley, the party's here!" Rebekah bellowed so loudly that my shoulders bunched up. I smirked and I ducked under his arm. He watched me leave to go find Hayley. Rebekah stepped very closely into the new arrival, and she uttered, "Not going to happen."

* * *

 **Mikaelson Mansion - Backyard**

Hayley's family knew how to party. They took real advantage of having no neighbors out here; the music was cranked up, drinks were flowing, an eager, rambunctious crowd dominated the dance floor, all were spinning, and laughing, and loving every minute of their night. I'd managed to escape another elbow crooking into mine, and clamber a safer distance away from the dance floor.

"It looks pretty good, huh?" Hayley said, following my gaze around all of the twinkling fairy lights, and the flickering candles.

"It looks pretty great. It looks like everything you always wanted." I said, and watched her nod, happily, before I asked her, "And you get this just one night a month? That's all they get?"

"I'm working on it." Hayley said, simply, "I will figure out a way to free them...eventually."

Her gaze was transfixed on her pack, and as fun as they were to watch, I couldn't help but feel like she was avoiding eye contact with me.

"I want to help." I told her, "You need them as much as they need you."

"No. It's okay. This is way more family time than I've ever had before. It's okay. For now. And, you've done enough." Hayley assured me, "You got me this far."

"No. You don't understand." I told her, "I _really_ want to help you, like, right down to my core. You're so close, and you need help to cross the finish line and finally get everything you ever wanted, and everything that I have so loved having. I love my family. I love them when I hate them, maybe even more so. I hurt and I ache every day over losing them...and then I thank the heavens for all that we had and have, and will have together, and I want that for you. All of it; the good, the bad, the stupid, the silly, everything that makes you step back in nothing but sheer gratitude and love for where you came from, and the people that made you who you are. That's the end game. Always has been. That's the whole point of everything we went through this summer. I can _see_ that it's not done, my eyes and my heart are telling me one thing, but then, I keep talking myself out of it...I can't even settle on the thought of staying for longer than one second...and it goes around again."

Hayley looked at me sheepishly, and exhaled slowly.

"What happened with Tyler?" I asked her, abruptly, "Why does he hate me now?"

She went to say something, but she thought better of it.

"Okay. So, _that's_ how I know I'm not bat shit crazy." I scoffed, "You know, I'm suddenly recalling this promise we made to never bullshit each other, ever again, a little outside-"

"Austin. I know." Hayley said, "And I take that promise very seriously. But above all, you are my best and sweetest friend, and I don't want anything to happen to you. _You_ are my family, by choice. And you have to know that I only went along with this charade because he showed me what happened to that other girl. I'm the trapped one here. You're not. I have to ride this out to the end. I made a bad choice many moons ago, and I am going to deal with the consequences. Yes, my endgame is dancing around in this backyard, and I will work it out. Yours is back in Mystic Falls, with your family. I love you, but you've taken enough risks for me, and I'd rather miss you like Hell, than book you a seat there right next to mine."

"Hayley?" Eve interrupted from behind us, "Can I introduce you to someone?"

Hayley didn't take her eyes away from mine, and she asked me, "Do you trust me?"

I thought for a little moment, and then I nodded, and said, honestly, "Yes."

"I will tell you why Tyler's gone off the deep end, once they all go. Okay?" She said, and then followed Eve inside the house.

* * *

 **Mikaelson Mansion - Reception Room**

"Hey. I'm Rosanna." I waved a little to get the brooding man's attention, and asked, "It's Jackson, right?"

He returned from wherever he'd disappeared off to, and blinked his eyes, hard. He rose from his stoic perch against the window sill, and made his way over. He shook my hand heartily, and said, "Yeah. Jackson. Kenner."

He shoogled my hand with such intensity that I almost audibly winced. His floppy brown curls, and kind soulful eyes were definitely a front; he was packing some serious strength underneath that lumberjack get up.

"Is Hayley here?" I asked him, and subtly brushed my crushed hand, wiggling the digits a little to be sure I still could. I gestured back, and told him, "I got like a conga line of people out there who want to meet her, and I'm getting real light on family-friendly anecdotes."

"Now is uh...it's not a great time." Jackson drawled, vaguely.

Hayley suddenly reappeared into the room, looking particularly frazzled. She had her phone on loudspeaker, and she informed the caller, "Elijah, something's going on with the witches."

"Listen to me." He replied, breathily, as though he'd just sprinted up several flights of stairs, "You were right. Celeste is back. Niklaus, Rebekah-you're all in danger."

The windows of the reception room all slammed shut by a sudden, powerful gust of wind. The sound felt like a slap to the nervous system; my skin prickled and demanded motion, the echo lingered deep inside my chest, my heart was kick-started and thumped away from me.

"What's going on?" Jackson asked.

"It's a trap." Hayley informed us, "I didn't make a deal with any witch."

"What?" Jackson scorned back.

"What witch?" I asked either of them.

"Hayley, you have to find Rebekah. You stay with her until I get there." Elijah demanded.

A fire crackled and burned around the porch of the plantation house. We rushed through the archway, headed for the front door, hopeful that we could still clear the blaze if we ran fast. Jackson slammed into Hayley's back, Hayley had slammed into the empty doorway; a boundary spell had been cast over the entire threshold. The flames consumed the porch and burst through the boundary, roaring and repelling us backwards, further back inside the smoking house.

"Elijah, it's a spell." Hayley cried into her phone, "They're trapping us inside."

Flames erupted all around the house as the doors and windows slammed shut one by one, sealing us in; the air grew darker and thinner. Jackson tried to break through the window with the piano stool, but it shattered upon impact, leaving the window perfectly intact. The flames continued to grow inside the house and started torching the curtains and the carpets.

I just need to think, I muttered to myself. Breathe. My breath is not laboured. I don't choke. I don't splutter. You hear that? I spoke to the flames. I guard you. I _am_ you. Listen to me. Do not cleanse me. Listen! I focused and forged a line around us, and slammed a fist into the ground, brushing the flames away from the three of us. Jackson stared back at me, blankly, before moving on to the wall of flames burning out and away from us. I stepped through as though the wall of fire was nothing but a spritz of mist. I grabbed a tablecloth from an end table and poured the water from a vase of flowers onto it before handing it to Hayley.

"Here. Breathe through this." I demanded. Hayley did as she was told, but continued to cough violently. I told Jackson, "Take turns."

"I'm fine." Jackson groaned out, valiantly.

"Shut up!" I scorned back, "We're still stuck. I need you!"

More werewolves suddenly staggered down the staircase, all coughing and spluttering. The fire alarms were all screaming in our ears.

"We couldn't jump!" One bellowed down to Jackson, with great difficulty, "Something in the way?!"

"We have to get out of here." Hayley whined.

"Shit." I muttered. I didn't realise that there were so many people upstairs. I was objectively in no peril. I could try to hold out with these two, protect them, but not this whole freaking party of people.

"STAY BACK!" I demanded of the others.

The fire continued to grow in size, burning its way up the walls towards the ceiling. I focused, drowned out the cries, and reached out. I touched the dancing flames, and channeled all of their burgeoning energy; I took it and sent it howling out towards the back window. It pierced and shattered into tiny pieces from the sheer force of the flames. A rush of cool wind rushed back inside the house, and the smoke bellowed out; a murky path was cleared. I heard them scream in agony that I was leaving them all behind.

"GO!" I barked at Jackson as he pulled Hayley up into his arms, "I'll get the others."

* * *

 **Mikaelson Mansion - Smoldering Remains**

"Ow." I groaned out and pushed a crumbling wooden beam off my chest, with a little difficulty.

I looked down at all of my limbs, blackened, but all still there; all my little hairs were prickling up, greeting the cool early morning breeze. Which morning that might be? Hmm...it might be the next one by now, or the next. I caressed my head and grumbled about not missing this part at all. I pulled myself up out of the black ashes; the thick covering on my skin swished down my body instantly and scattered at my feet, which were still buried in the dust and debris.

I stood tall and I took a deep breath. The pile of house was still smoldering away; it was still burning, and polluting the dawning sky, and falling down into ever smaller bits. But I wasn't. I wasn't engaging with the energy still humming around me. I didn't need to. I was new.

I sensed him there, before I saw him. And I knew exactly who he was. I knew him better, and clearer than before. Elijah stood on the stones steps up to the mansion, with clothes in hand. He rose from his silent, patient position upon hearing me emerge. His tie was loose, top button undone; he'd been there a while.

I ducked under a fallen beam and I climbed my way through the torched wreckage. I walked up to him, unabashed, and I took the clothes from his hand. I slipped the dress over my head, and I uttered, "Don't."

"Rosa-" He rasped.

I raised a hand up, and I told him, "I just got significantly more powerful, Elijah. Do. Not."

He looked back at me, with sadness, and lament overwhelming every part of him, in the exact same manner as he had before, right there, at the bottom of the steps we stood on now, and it did not endear at all. No, knowing all I knew now, it infuriated me. I had to walk away. I brushed past him and started down those steps.

"I had my reasons." Elijah uttered.

I stopped. I turned. I glared up at him.

"You didn't have the balls to break things off so you erased my memories and you rewrote my feelings." I scorned.

"I have brought _nothing_ but pain and destruction into your life." Elijah said, returning to me.

"None of that was you!" I barked back, "THIS was you!"

"Being with you was selfish. It was a moment of weakness." Elijah implored, and gestured sharply, "Loving any one of us has proven time and again to be nothing but a death sentence. I will not let harm befall you."

"Okay. Your nobility is shining through, Elijah, it is blinding! I see it. I get it!" I scorned back, "But…it's not _why_ you did it. It's…you did it…after everything we've been through. You went into my mind…and you stole something from me. I _trusted_ you, whole-heartedly. And I can't…I can't even look at you right now!"

"Rosanna." Elijah huffed out, and grabbed onto my wrist. His touch lingered. I hated how I didn't shake it off immediately; I stopped and I leant into it. He shook his head and he told me, "I am sorry. Hurting you is the last thing I ever want to do."

"Too late." I whispered and left him.

* * *

 **The Bayou - Werewolf Camp**

Word had passed down through the surrounding forest, from watcher to watcher, and found its way back to Hayley, who was alerted in good time of my presence in the Bayou. She was waiting for me, in a much more animated, and lively encampment, beside a bustling fire pit that put Eve's attempt to shame.

"Thanks for the threads." I said to Hayley, and sat down beside her.

"Elijah insisted that he be the one to wait for your return." She explained. She noted the strong side-eye emanating from her right, and added, "And... _that_ is the last time that I will ever mention his name."

"Did it hurt?" Jackson asked, abruptly, and presented a cold bottle of beer; his offering softened the brunt of his harsh question. I took it, gladly, and smiled a little at his forthright nature.

"Jack." Hayley hissed curtly, and he just shrugged his shoulders back, confused over where his error lay.

He settled down on the other side of Hayley and looked at me intently, clearly intrigued.

"Yes." I answered him, simply, and then shot back, "I thought y'all were supposed to be slaves to the full moon or something?"

"Not a problem anymore, thanks to Hayley." Jackson determined.

I looked at Hayley and she informed me that I'd been gone for three days. That was...a new record.

"So, what are you?" Jackson asked, abruptly.

Hayley slapped him in the abdomen and he grimaced.

"It's fine. It's refreshing to have someone shoot straight." I uttered, pensively, "I have been called a bunch of things, Phoenix keeps popping up."

"So...just like that, you claw your way back out of the dirt, and everything is...like, you hit the reset button." Jackson asked.

"I guess. All for the low, low price of burning to death." I uttered, and took a long sip of my beer.

"Could you have...gotten out, then?" Jackson asked.

"Jack." Hayley scorned.

"I had a hunch." I replied, honestly, "Couple of things weren't adding up."

Jackson sat back, and whispered to Hayley, "Your friend's a total bad-ass, and she kinda scares me." He turned to me, and said, "I'm sorry about your man wiping your brain, and for what happened to you, but I'm damn glad you were there. This pack is immensely grateful for what you did, it's a miracle we didn't lose anyone, and that's all down to you. So, thank you, and know that you will always be welcome here."

"Thank you." I said.

Another new arrival gripped our attention, but this one had arrived completely undetected, and unannounced.

"Rebekah, what are you doing here?" Hayley asked her.

"I came to say goodbye." She replied and turned her attention to Jackson. She said, shortly, "Not to you. Do you mind?"

Jackson raised his hands, and welcomed the excuse to disappear from the conversation. I hunkered down and decided to pick at the label on my beer bottle to pass the time.

"What happened to us girls sticking together?" Hayley asked her.

"Well, Nik and I came to a sort of all-or-nothing arrangement. I leave town for good, and he allows me to. Can't pass that up." Rebekah somewhat explained.

"A thousand years with Klaus?" Hayley quipped, "I guess you deserve a few vacation days."

"Listen." Rebekah said, seriously, "About Nik, he is a monster. Do not ever cross him. But, he does want more from life than to just be feared. He's too broken to find it himself, but I do believe there is hope for him in the baby that you carry. And speaking of your child - our family has no shortage of enemies. She will inherit all of them. Please, be careful."

"You know, you can always come back and visit. I've been known to keep a secret or two from Klaus." Hayley insisted.

"Well, if I can't, you make sure to tell that little girl stories of her crazy Auntie Bex." Rebekah asked, "And let her know, despite my absence, I do love her very much."

Rebekah took a deep breath and then she turned her attention over to me. I was swept away for a bit, invested in her raw emotion, but I quickly crashed back down with that one look.

"Don't." I whispered.

"Is that the only word you know?" She asked. I stared back at her, silently; she'd clearly got a verbatim recap. She sighed, and she said, "I'm leaving. So, I might as well say my piece before I bugger off for good: Elijah loves you. He is so clouded by that love, he has done some really stupid things, things that I'm not here to justify, or defend. But you should know that I have never seen him so hung up over someone, and I have never seen him...scared."

"He broke my heart, Rebekah. I don't care." I uttered, sadly, and walked away from her.


	64. Today Is A Good Day, Annie

**Betty-Sue's Pancake House - Atlanta, Georgia - 07:10**

I clocked Enzo across the diner and sat down in the booth opposite him.

"Hello, Gorgeous." He greeted me with a wild grin, and propped down his newspaper beside him.

"Nice choice." I muttered, and looked around the janky diner. I was more searching for a waitress than judging the joint; I was desperate for an entire jug of coffee; I'd driven all through the night to get here.

"Nice...hillbilly wagon." Enzo scoffed, and gestured over to my choice of wheels; Oliver's truck was parked up outside, and it did not look out of place among the other patron's rides.

"It's...a friend's." I replied, vaguely.

Enzo sat back as a waitress miraculously appeared, and she placed down a plate of pancakes and a coffee in front of me. Enzo stared deep into her eyes, and said, "Thank you, love."

"Enjoy!" She beamed back at Enzo, and tucked her hair behind her hair, flirtatiously.

She giggled, and shuffled away. I suppressed the urge to gag, and motioned to stop her and tell her I didn't order this, but Enzo, of course, spoke over me.

"Eat your pancakes, love, they'll get cold." Enzo insisted.

I was a little confused, but truthfully couldn't muster the energy to whip back with something sarcastic, so I just shoveled the pancakes into my face.

"You must've been driving all night?" Enzo asked, "What's that, a 7 hour drive from New Orleans?"

"Six and a half." I replied, monotonously, and poured a solid 3-seconds worth of sugar into my coffee.

I was going to question how this borderline acquaintance was privy to the details of where I'd been, but I dismissed the concern with a single name: Caroline. She'd imparted so much in her frantic phone calls to me last night, she'd been talking over at least two state lines, so I fully appreciated the gravity of the situation; but, that still didn't explain Enzo's enrollment on the task.

"Why are you here?" I asked him, plainly, taking a leaf right out of Jackson's book of tact, "I thought Stefan hated you. Why are you helping him?"

His brow peaked, and he looked tickled at the candor.

"Sloan requested that I deal with the 'surplus to requirement' doppelganger." Enzo explained, "Stefan was, of course, the easier and closer choice, but letting Sloan fry his brain beyond recognition seemed like the wrong call, given that Damon and I have only just made amends."

"What does Sloan have on you?" I asked.

Enzo snorted, and said, "Absolutely nothing. What could I have possibly gotten up to locked away in your daddy's torture chamber?" Enzo stared back at my glare, eagerly awaiting my bite. When he didn't get the snap back he wanted, he posed, "I donated my body to science, of my own accord this time, and that kind selfless act resulted in a cure to your sister's ripper virus, and Damon's too, if he means anything to you. Does that not earn me something resembling the benefit of the doubt?"

"So...you just want to _what,_ ride off into the sunset with your killing buddy? Is killing innocent people not as much fun when you're alone?" I retorted, dryly.

"Right." Enzo smirked, and chuckled, "Damon mentioned you get a little judgy. Then again..he also said you had a thing for accents."

"Hmm. Shouldn't we get going?" I asked, "Get on with-"

"Murdering an innocent man, for the heinous crime of looking like Stefan?" Enzo finished. He immediately snatched up my jingling phone on what seemed like the first nanosecond it rang, and answered the call, "Atlanta Assassination Squad. How may we be of service?"

"Enzo!" I hissed and attempted to claw it back, to no avail.

"You told us to find a nameless paramedic at the scene of a car accident in a city of freeways, fried green tomatoes and terrible drivers. It's not exactly as easy as it sounds, Caroline." Enzo whined, and rolled his eyes through out her spiel. Eventually, he relayed, "Tom Avery's the name, and he works for Atlanta Metropolitan Hospital. Smashing."

I jerked the phone from Enzo's exasperated hand and scorned into it, "How do you know that? Did she do the vision thing again?"

"She doesn't care about the deal. She doesn't give a damn about frying his brain, she only needs his blood!" Caroline whined, and reiterated, "-blood that is useless until he and Elena are the last two doppelgangers on Earth! You need to find this guy, pronto. She says, and I quote, I will give Stefan a back alley lobotomy if they fail to kill Tom Avery!"

"Well, I don't fail at things." I scorned into the phone, "So, you tell her, she does it again and I will kill her too."

I hung up and put the phone down on the table, and stared at the blank screen. The only way to rescue Stefan and save him from having soup for brains was to kill someone who looked exactly like Stefan. Okay. Easy. Easy breezy.

" _I'll kill her too_?" Enzo imitated me, and snorted delightedly, "You're like a perky, blonde angel of death. Almost had me convinced."

* * *

 **Atlanta Metropolitan Hospital - 09:00**

We were sat in the waiting area. The receptionist didn't know Tom Avery, so Enzo compelled the her to track someone down who did. We bickered over what we were going to do once we found the Stefan lookalike. Enzo suggested a quick snap of the neck, and we'd be back in Virginia in time for tea. I pointed out the multiple witnesses, and the security cameras that had clocked us coming in here, asking around for him. Enzo then suggested he simply compel the man to walk out into traffic. I told Enzo that I was ignoring him now, and we'd just play it by ear. I pulled out one of the super old magazines and began flicking through it. Enzo decided to pass the time by staring at me.

"Okay. I give up. I can't tell if you're avoiding the mission, or me." Enzo said.

"Well, why can't it be both?" I posed.

"Because I've earned some company, after hand delivering the antidote that kept Damon and Elena from consuming each other. Literally." Enzo reminded me.

"Yes, you mentioned, but that doesn't mean I trust you." I said, "I still don't understand why you're even here. I just don't buy the brownie points with Damon angle."

"Okay. You caught me. Since Damon's trying to be a good boy these days, I'm in need of a new murder buddy." Enzo declared. I side-eyed him in response and returned to my magazine. Enzo chuckled, "I'm joking! A joke? British humor...? If you want something resembling an honest answer, you remind me of someone I once knew. She worked for the Augustine's."

"Which means she tortured you?" I shot back and smirked, "I can definitely relate to that."

"Maggie was only there to observe my behavior in captivity. I quite liked her, actually." Enzo said.

I gasped and posed, "And let me guess, she made you want to be a better man."

"Not at all." Enzo said, "She just reminded me that I was good all along."

I was truthfully, surprised at that answer.

"There was another girl who showed me the same. More recently. In the grand scheme of things." Enzo declared, and rose from his seat. He extended his hand to me, as though he were inviting me onto the dance floor and he asked, "Can I show you something?"

I looked at him, skeptically, and then looked around the bustling hallway we were sat in.

"I want to show you a memory of mine, and our buddy won't talk to the freaks having a waiting-room kumbaya mediation if I show you here." Enzo implored, and he asked once more, "Come on, indulge me."

"We might miss the guy." I said.

"I'll be quick. Come on." He insisted.

He led me down the hallway and into a storage closet.

"Enzo-" I scorned.

"Shut up for one minute." He implored, and raised his hands to my face. He paused and requested, "Yeah?"

I sighed and told him, "Hurry up, then."

He showed me...me.

 _I must have been four or five years old. I didn't exactly remember this, but I knew everything about this room, it all made sense to me, nothing was out of place. I watched Jeremy and I playing in the reception area of our father's practice, we were laughing, and then we had a disgruntled back-and-forth. I bent down to look closer at his little face. The speech was warbled, but it sounded like him. Our ball had bounced down the steps, down into the basement. I followed Little Rosanna; Little Jeremy slumped down flat on the couch in a particularly dramatic fashion that I remembered all too well. She toddled down the stairs. At the bottom, she froze. She'd heard the screaming, and the rattling through a closed door. She looked at it for a little while, unsure, and then in perfect, horror-movie-style decorum, she started walking towards it, slowly, uncertainly. I reached out to stop her, and muttered 'no', but a ghostly hand drifted through my own and connected with her. He touched her shoulder. She turned around, scared._

 _It was my dad, and I was the ghost. A sudden wave of emotion washed over me, and I felt the tears brimming. It was trippy to see my tiny self. It was funny to see tiny Jeremy. But to see my dad, standing a few feet away from me...it was a gift._

 _"Hey." He whispered, and crouched down to his little daughter's level, "You're not supposed to be down here. Basement's a kid-free zone, remember?"_

 _Little Rosanna nodded and she gestured back to the door. She whispered, "I heard someone scream. They're hurt."_

 _"Oh, it's okay." He assured her, soothingly, "Everything's fine. In fact, today's a good day, Annie."_

 _Little Rosanna asked him, "Why?"_

 _"Daddy's gonna save a little girl's life. She's just about the same age as you. Pretty cool, huh?" He asked, and my little self nodded, with a wide smile, and nothing but blind adoration for her father. He took her hand into his and he declared, "All right. Let's get out of here. Doctor's orders."_

 _Little Rosanna smiled and she picked up her ball on the way. She beamed up at her father, and she said, "Okay, dad."_

 _"You're taking ages!" I could hear Jeremy call out from up the stairs._

I stepped out of Enzo's hold and suddenly felt very exposed, and vulnerable. I huffed out, "What? Why?"

"Come on, you're a smart girl." Enzo said.

"That's not your-" I muttered, and as soon as the words trickled out it dawned on me: that was his memory. I looked back at him, and I asked, "That was you, screaming?"

Enzo nodded and rasped, "Didn't mean to disrupt your little kick-about. It was a slow-release poison burning its way through my veins, if I recall correctly."

"Why did you show me that?" I asked him, "To hurt me?"

"No. That is not my intent." Enzo said, "Twas a preface, to the rest."

"Elena told me everything." I shot back, "What he did. What he was trying to do. And...I know that he thought he was doing the right thing. He left as soon as-"

"As soon as he realised what you were. I know." Enzo said, "You don't have to defend the mild-mannered super-conflicted Doctor Grayson Gilbert to me, we had many a long chat together, and whilst yes, he did his fair share of experiments on me, in the cosy confines of that very basement, he was far off from being the worst one. I actually rather enjoyed our time together, he was a great conversationalist. He gradually broke off all ties with Augustine, fearing that you too would become a lab rat. He was a smart man. If only his sympathy would have extended to anyone other than his immediate relatives...if he asks, let's just say we were making out in here. Yeah? That's less odd."

That last line confused me, greatly. If my dad asks what now? Before I could scowl, cringe, or snap back at him, Enzo had flashed into me, and pulled my body right up against his, his hands were on the small of my back and my neck, his lips were dangerously close to mine. Half a second later, the door to the storage closet opened and a doctor was standing there. I peeled myself out of Enzo's hands, rapidly, and staggered away from him, looking very convincingly flustered.

"Excuse me. Karen saw you wander off. You were asking her about Tom Avery?" The doctor asked.

"Apologies, Doc. This one can't keep her hands to herself." Enzo joked.

"GOD. No. But, yes! I need to see Tom as soon as possible. It's a matter of life or death." I insisted.

"I wish I could help you." The doctor said, "Tom Avery was a pain in my ass, but he was also the best paramedic I ever met."

"What do you mean, "was"?" Enzo asked.

"He disappeared four months ago." The doctor said, "No one knows where he is. Um...these closets contain a lot of important medical equipment, I'm sorry to be a party pooper, but we can't have people...in them."

The doctor ushered us out, and locked the door behind him. It was mortifying. He excused himself, and I thanked him for taking the time to speak to us.

"Yes, thank you Doctor No-Help-Whatsoever." Enzo muttered under his breath as he sauntered away. He looked me up and down, and asked, "Who are you calling?"

"Stefan." I replied.

"I hope you're calling me to tell me the doppelgänger is dead." Sloan said.

Enzo's brow peaked, he could clearly hear the conversation too.

"Your stupid doppel-visions gave us bad information. Put Stefan on the phone."

"Is the doppelganger dead?" Sloan repeated.

"Tom's been missing from the hospital for months." I told her, "Put Stefan on the phone. I need to ask him if there was anything else he noticed in his visions - any small details that could maybe help us out?"

"I'll see what I can do. I'll text you any pertinent details." Sloan said, and hung up.

"What?! HEY!" I hissed.

I tried calling Stefan back, nothing, his phone was switched off, and Caroline's was going straight to voicemail.

"What a charming time to choose radio silence." Enzo declared.

A few minutes later, I received a text from an unknown number: _6643 Peach Tree Drive. Redheaded woman._

* * *

 **6643 Peach Tree Drive - Atlanta, Georgia - 11:15**

Enzo and I followed the address that the mystery text had given us and found an old, beaten down house.

"It's a miracle we found the place." Enzo groaned, "Every other street in this blasted city is Peach Tree."

"These look old." I said, pointing at the mailers falling out of the stuffed mailbox. I picked up a hiking store catalog and noted, "Like, four months old."

Tom Avery was an outdoors-man, he liked hiking, he like the outdoors and...oh, shut up, brain. Enzo tugged on the door handle, to no avail.

"Seventy years in a cage, you'd think I'd have learned to pick a lock by now." Enzo quipped.

He crushed the doorknob and yanked it off. The door trundled open in a rather creepy fashion. The inside of the house suitably matched that level of creepy. A red-headed woman was knelt at the other end of the main hallway, her eyes rolled back.

"Red hair...that's her. She's a witch." I said.

Enzo tried to enter the building, but a protection spell prevented him from doing so.

"And she must own the house." I added, with a smirk.

Enzo put his arm out to prevent me from sauntering on without him. He smirked, and said, "Not for long."

He launched the door knob as hard as he could at the woman. He struck her square in the forehead to a terrible squelching crunch. She flopped down dead onto her side. The candles in the house all blew out in dramatic unison. The lines of salt scrawling their way across the floor all slowly receded and returned to their sender.

"Why did you do that?" I whined, and slapped him in the torso, "She was our only lead!"

"Exactly, and I am a murderous vampire." Enzo explained. He leaned in close to me, and whispered, "Surprise!"

Enzo swaggered his way inside the house with ease, and tapped the lifeless body with his foot. She had a gaping wound in the middle of her forehead, a river of blood erupting out of it, I don't know what the heck he was checking her for, she was clearly super dead. I must have been wearing my disdain on the outside too.

"She was in a bloody trance, unable to answer questions." Enzo defended himself, "I don't see why you're mad. I'm only doing what's necessary to save your friend, because you won't."

"I wouldn't be here if I wasn't up for this." I scorned back at him.

Enzo looked delighted that I'd bit. He smirked and noted, " _This_ being the cold-blooded murder of an innocent man? You can hardly say the word. How do you expect to actually do it?"

"I'm sorry, is this all supposed to be easy?" I scoffed, "You barely know me, so let me reintroduce myself: Hi. My name is Rosanna Gilbert and I am a good person, and I don't just go around killing people on the weekends!"

"You've got me all wrong, Rosanna Gilbert." Enzo insisted, "I'm not judging you. I'm preparing you." I scoffed and moved to dart out of his way, but he insisted on recapturing my eye line, ducking into it, and pulling me back in. He explained, "I've seen soldiers, men trained to kill, look their enemy in the eye and freeze up on the battlefield – a hesitation that usually costs them their lives."

"Well, last time I checked, this isn't war and I'm not a soldier, but Stefan is one of the best people that I know and when it comes to saving his life, yes, I will do just about anything–" I ranted but was cut short by Enzo's attention drifting away. I scorned and asked him, "What? What is it?"

"The tell-tale heart." Enzo said, vaguely, and walked away.

Enzo led us down into the basement, following the sound of Tom Avery's comatose heartbeat. He lay flat on his back atop of a cot, multiple wires and needles wedged into him. He looked pasty and pale, and very much like Stefan.

"Why would a witch go to such lengths to keep a man alive and off the grid for four months?" Enzo asked.

"Four months ago, Silas died." I told him, "The original Stefan-gänger."

"He's a dead ringer, all right." Enzo quipped, "Or rather, soon to be dead."

I bent down beside the man and started waving my hand in front of his face.

"Tom? Tom? Tom Avery?" I asked.

"Rosanna, let me do this." Enzo insisted. He placed a hand on my shoulder and he requested, "Just walk away now, go upstairs..."

"No..." I muttered, and shrugged out of his hold, "I can't-"

Suddenly, Tom jolted to life and started feverishly ripping the tubes from his face and body. He looked around the dank creepy basement, terrified, and then looked to the strangers staring back at him, looking just as startled as he.

"What's happening?" Tom gasped at us, "Who are you people?"

"We're angels mate, come to deliver you to the sweet hereafter." Enzo joked.

"Compel him to calm down." I pleaded with Enzo, rising before him, "Tell him that he can trust us!"

"Bonding with him will only make it harder on you." Enzo sighed.

"Please, Enzo. Let me do this my way." I begged of him, "Please."

Enzo rolled his eyes, and then crouched down and looked into Tom's. He assured the man, "Whoa. Relax. Hey. We're your buddies. You can trust us. You won't feel a thing, mate. I promise you that much." Enzo turned back to me, and rasped, "Happy? Now bugger off upstairs. I'll be right behind you."

I nodded feebly, and the second that Enzo's head was turned back to Tom, I summoned the ferocity of the flame and I snapped his neck.

"What's going on?" Tom wailed as Enzo slumped down, seemingly dead.

"I'm getting you out of here." I assured him.

* * *

 **Betty Sue's Pancake House - Atlanta, Georgia - 13:25**

I didn't know Atlanta so I took Tom to the only real landmark I had: the janky diner. I watched him gobble down his pancakes with the same fervor I had this morning, and he told me everything that he remembered from before he was kidnapped. He was a really funny, smart-ass of a guy; just as witty, observant, and sarcastic as Stefan. And...he was a good, kind person.

"If there's anything I can do to repay you, let me know." Tom said, as we reached Oliver's truck.

"You won't see me again. And...what I need from you isn't something that I can take." I told him.

"I-I don't understand." He said.

"Well, you don't have to." I said, "You just remind me of someone who's really important to me."

"Well, he's one hell of a lucky guy." Tom said.

"Yeah..." I said, and felt a pang in my heart, "So are you. You should start over. Get out of Georgia, drive until you find a place you like; meet a pretty girl; settle down; be happy for the rest of your long, long life. Okay? Please? You trust my advice, right?"

"I do." Tom said, "I will."

"Okay." I said, with a smile, "End of sappy moment. Get going."

"Okay. Thank you again, for everything." He said. He opened the truck door, and he looked back and laughed, "I don't think I've ever eaten so much in my life."

"Yeah. I don't think anyone has." I laughed.

"Then I suppose it was a fitting last supper." Enzo declared, out of no where, and flashed into Tom, snapping his neck in one swift action.

"No!" I screamed, and lunged forward but it was too late to protect him. Tom Avery slumped down onto the floor, dead. I glared up at Enzo, and I cried, "Why the hell did you do that?!"

"Because you're not the only one who cut a deal to save someone's life." Enzo declared, "That old flame I mentioned, Maggie, the travelers claim they know where to find her."

"Yeah. Well, if she's anything like me, then she just lost all respect for you." I huffed out.

"Then I'll earn her forgiveness in time. Because unlike you, Rosanna, I'm willing to do whatever it takes for the people I love." Enzo said, "The travelers moved to some junk yard just outside Mystic Falls. Feel free to tell Stefan you're the one who saved his life."

* * *

 **Salvatore Boarding House - Den - 22:45**

Damon was slumped on the couch, swirling around his glass of bourbon, idly. I slumped down next to him. I was exhausted. I'd spent so long on the road today, I was sick at the thought of driving anywhere ever again. 6 and a half hours this morning, and near enough 8 hours tonight. Plus, the fact that I hadn't slept in...urgh, I couldn't even do the math. Many, many hours. I'd been in seven, or maybe eight States today!

"Where is everyone?" I asked Damon.

"Elena moved back into her dorm. Jeremy moved in with the Hardy Boys."

"Huh." I yawned, widely, and flopped my head back. Maybe I could just...sleep here. That sounded good. Good...good, good.

"You moving back to New Orleans? Then I can complete the whole set, all three Gilberts successfully repelled in one day." Damon quipped.

"No. Sorry." I muttered, "I'm not going back to New Orleans, for the foreseeable future."

"Why?" Damon asked, "What happened with you and your centuries old Sugar Daddy?"

I flopped my head forward, and I informed him, "Last time I was in New Orleans, I died." His eyes widened at the dramatic opener to my tale, and he gave me his full attention as I elaborated, "I saved a bunch of Hayley's werewolf buddies from a burning building. I burned. And then a whole bunch of memories came back to me, like the relationship that Elijah and I started, everything that we did together...everything. Hmm, it was really nice. And then...him compelling me to forget it all, and get lost, came back too."

"That...doesn't sound like Elijah." Damon said.

"Right?" I uttered, and tapped my noggin, lightly, "But I have had the full technicolour version playing on a loop in my mind the whole way to Atlanta, and then home...too."

"Hmm. Speaking of, I hear your mission was a big fat failure?" Damon said, "What happened, kid?"

"You got it in one." I said, sadly, "I failed. I couldn't kill him. Not even to save Stefan."

Damon squinted, and said, "You do realize you're feeling guilty for _not_ being able to kill someone, and that's exactly why Stefan asked _you_ to go, and not Caroline."

"He knew I couldn't do it?" I muttered.

"Not that you couldn't do it, but wouldn't do it." Damon corrected me.

"How?" I huffed out.

"That's what makes you you, Rosie Pants." Damon said, "Hard-wired for good. Put us all to shame."

"That makes no sense." I replied.

"No, choosing you makes Stefan Stefan. It makes perfect sense." Damon said, "There's pizza in the kitchen, if you want it."

Damon sauntered away upstairs to his room, and left me there alone and even more confused than before.


	65. My Not-So-Imaginary Friend

**Mystic Grill - Morning**

"So, the vision-memory thing was tough, and weird, but also really nice, in a way. Seeing dad like that again was amazing, even with that awful patchy beard he had, remember? I think it was just the fact that it was Enzo showing me the memory, you know? I don't really know him, at all, and it was like...I don't know, invasive or something, like...get out of my moment, dude. I get that he would never _want_ to be there, he wasn't exactly happy to be on the other side of that door. It was just a really weird trip, all around. I'm glad that everything worked out okay with Stefan...but of course, that was all Enzo too. He's been here all of five minutes, and he is everywhere." I said and glanced down at the text I'd just received. I told Elena, "That's Caroline. She's minutes away."

I looked back up at my sister and noticed that she was doing it again. She was staring at nothing, looking like she was trying to solve an equation. I waved a hand in front of her face and called out, "Elena? Hello? Elena!"

Elena jerked suddenly and snapped out of it.

"How did I get here?" Elena asked, breathily, "I was just standing at the doorway."

"Uh, you...walked?" I replied.

"Right." Elena huffed out, "What were you saying? Something about Enzo. And Dad. And August-time."

"Are you okay?" I asked her, sincerely.

"I don't know." She said, "It's so weird. I-I had this dream about Stefan last night. But, it didn't feel like a dream, you know? It felt like it was real, like I was _there_. And-and I just had another one, just now. And I feel like...just, so confused...it felt so real."

She patted her hands subtly, gently against the table, feeling the solid texture, checking that this moment was in fact the real one.

"Uh...that's weird." I muttered and took a long pensive sip of my coffee.

"If you bite your tongue any harder, you'll bleed, Ro." Elena said, "Just say it."

"Sure." I said, and plonked my coffee down to really express this fully, "First of all, I can't believe you let me talk for the last hour about Enzo's face being this close to mine, when the whole time you were holding back on sexy dreams with Stefan. That completely trumps facial closeness. And secondly, sexy dreams with your ex seems a little like...Psych 101. Actually, whatever comes before 101. You told Damon that you couldn't see him anymore, and now you're suddenly having these dreams about Stefan?"

"Okay, I never said they were sexy dreams, let's get _that_ straight." Elena scorned, and then explained, "They are nice, romantic ones. And it's not just about Stefan, okay? Mom and dad were still alive in them. It was like a different life. Dad was waiting up for the end of our first ever date, waiting to spring the porch light on us. He came out and interrupted our kiss goodnight, and then he met Stefan!"

She spoke so earnestly, and with such bittersweet joy, I didn't think she was bullshitting. My cellphone began to jingle. Whilst maintaining a squinty glare at Elena, I answered it, "Stefan, hey."

"Hey. So, remember that night you felt crazy and then you asked me to tell you that you're not crazy. Yeah? Well, I need that right now. I need you to tell me that _I'm_ not crazy." Stefan said.

"Okay, lay it on me." I said.

"I was walking to my car, and I nearly got plowed over in the middle of the street because I was having some vision of Elena." Stefan informed me.

Elena's eyes widened in unison with mine.

"You...are so not crazy." I muttered.

* * *

 **Salvatore Boarding House - Library**

Elena had attempted to call Damon back at the Grill, but it was just ringing out every single time. I called our second favourite man-child, assuming that they were together, and requested that he pass on the info: we always joked about the universe drawing Stefan and Elena together, but now they were literally the last two doppelgangers on Earth, and it was actually happening, oh so vividly. We needed to figure this out. Together. Awkwardly.

"You know, I could just relay to you exactly what they're saying." Enzo chuckled and poured us drinks from Damon's not-so-secret stash.

"SSSH!" I scowled and flapped back at him. I pushed my ear up against the wall again, after poking the door open an inch more to eavesdrop on Damon and Elena a little better.

" _Well, at least they're not being obvious_." Elena chuckled, referring to the speed at which Enzo and I had scurried away and granted the exes their relative privacy.

A long extended silence once again hung in the air between them. I physically scrunched up and cringed in response. I started to doubt whether Damon was still there. Was she just talking to herself?

" _You got a pool table_." She said, eventually.

" _Yeah. I figured pool was a good outlet to put this pent-up energy that I seem to now have_." Damon said. Pent. Up...EW.

" _Yeah. I went running today, 10 miles. Could have gone 20_." Elena told him.

" _Yeah_." Damon drawled out.

I turned back to Enzo, and whispered, "Oh, my god. This is _so_ bad. They're fishing for small talk. We should do something...or-or something!"

" _Or_ we could stay right here and let them amuse us as they resist the desire to tear each other's clothes off." Enzo chuckled, and handed over a glass of bourbon.

I glared back at the man, and whined, "That's my sister." I snatched the glass from his hand, decided that was definitely not something I wanted to hear, and sauntered back over to the couch. I flopped down and requested, "Just...let me know if it's important...and PG-13."

"Yes, ma'am." Enzo said, with a smirk, and sat down beside me, "Where is our Leading Man anyway? Couldn't face the sheer awkwardness?"

"Stefan went to the Traveler camp to see if anyone's still there that can tell him what's going on." I explained.

"Yeah, good luck with that." Enzo scoffed.

"Well, it's our only lead." I said, "All we know is that Tom is dead-"

"You're welcome." Enzo rasped.

"-and the Travelers just committed a mass suicide, and now Stefan and Elena, who are clearly not together anymore, are having intense visions of each other." I said, "It seems super Traveler-related to me."

"A very good deduction, Nancy Drew." Enzo determined, and then chuckled, "Ouch! She used the F-word. Poor bastard."

"You mean...friend? But, I thought that's what this was." I said.

"Oh, it is, but it was never explicitly stated until now." Enzo said.

"And, that matters because?" I asked.

"Well, because until it's officially out there, there's still hope, and hope - haha...hope can trick you into all sorts of hilariously unrealistic scenarios." Enzo said.

"You mean Maggie?" I asked, "So...what happened there? I thought you would have ran off into her arms by now?"

"Well, the Travelers forgot to tell me where Maggie was before they lit themselves on fire. Talk about a lead going up in smoke." Enzo laughed.

"Yeah, but, and no offense...but even if she was still alive, wouldn't she be, like, really old?" I asked.

"Seventy years of captivity, and she was the face that I clung on to - just the notion that one day I'd get out and see her again." Enzo explained, "I don't want to date her, Rosanna. I want to thank her."

"Oh." I rasped, and couldn't think of anything else to say. He'd done it again; in among the sass, and the snide commentary, he'd opened up, and been...genuine. I thought I'd chance my luck, while there was still an opening and I asked him, "That memory you showed me, back in Atlanta. How...yeah, just...how?"

"How do vampires show others their memories?" Enzo asked, "That I cannot answer. Haven't the foggiest."

"No. Not the science behind it...like, you were-were behind a closed door, how did you even - you got all those details right, but you wouldn't have actually seen me?" I asked.

"I only heard your voices, and your own memory would have filled in the blanks." Enzo explained.

"Hmm." I hummed, "Okay. Well, thank you." Enzo glanced over at me, uncertain of what had garnered my gratitude, and I explained, "It was nice...seeing my dad again."

"You're quite welcome." Enzo said.

I watched Enzo take a long sip of his bourbon, and when he looked back at me, he noted that I'd held my gaze on him the whole time, mulling over the disconnect between the memories that 'rebirth' had granted me and the tortured, compelling man sat beside me, and then, I knew exactly what to say. It all flowed out naturally.

"I'm sorry I didn't remember you before." I told him.

"You were what, five? You're excused." Enzo said.

"I remember you now...your voice anyway." I said, "After New Orleans, after what happened down there...uh, it's happened before, I get this renewed clarity, I get some of my earliest memories back, randomly, and sometimes it's the smallest, most benign moments, and sometimes its stuffing notes and drawings through the cracks in the floorboards, sending them down to my...not-so-imaginary friend."

"I especially liked the ones of 'what the world looked like today'." Enzo said, "And...the one of you dropping an ice cream cone and instead of crying, you laid down on the ground and watched millions of ants playing in it. I assumed artistic license was used liberally there."

"No. It _was_ millions." I smirked defiantly.

Enzo laughed and uttered, "That's terrifying."

"Why didn't you say anything before?" I asked him.

"Right, hello there, you don't know me, but I was locked up and tortured in your father's basement for a while, and back when you were a precious five-year-old, you used to deliver me little doodles and whisper jokes through the floorboards and that pure innocent joy and tenuous link to the outside world sustained me for another decade or so, ensured that I clung on to my humanity just a little while longer, long enough to finally get out, and get back to Maggie. You reminded me that we are not born evil. The world batters us down, and makes us turn, and I wasn't going to let them win." Enzo declared, "They don't have a greeting card for that one. Hallmark's missing a trick."

I snorted into my glass.

"What happened in New Orleans?" Enzo asked.

I glanced back at him. He sat forward in his seat, and asked with sincerity.

"Oh, I burned alive, and rose up from the ashes. It's not a big deal. I do it all the time." I muttered.

"Not that." Enzo said, intently.

"Well, I'm still trying to work that part out." I uttered, vaguely, "I'm trying to stay mad, but I haven't been for a while..."

"I'm going to need a little more context." Enzo said, "Come on, I'm an excellent listener. Done nothing but listen for half a century. I'm so good that I can carry on this conversation whilst also listening to Elena elaborate on her fantasy life with Stefan. They are both really, really happy there, by the way, and Damon is decidedly...not so."

"Okay. Cliff notes: I trusted someone, completely, and for a while there, probably more than anyone else in this world." I said, "And I fell in love with him. And...he erased our entire relationship from my memory, to 'protect' me, to be all noble and let me go off and live a happy carefree life anywhere else."

"Were you in imminent danger? Was his fear founded?" Enzo asked.

"I'm a big girl, Enzo." I shot back, "I've been through Hell and back. I've lost. I've known loss. I don't need this."

"It sounds like your man loved you more than he loved himself. He had a choice between temporary happiness and your most certain demise, or a lifetime of emptiness and what ifs and the chance for you to move on, live your life, and most importantly, enjoy living your life. No more Hell. No more hurt. Not by his hand, anyway." Enzo posed.

I shot to my feet and spoke with my hands.

"Nothing that happened to me was by his hand. Not even close! If anything, it was made better, and easier, by him being around, and being there for me!" I shot back, and ranted on, "And I have really had enough of feeling like absolute nothing is within my control, I'm tired of reacting to everything, and never having the chance to decide something for myself. And, I chose him. I chose to love him. And I was happy with _my_ choice."

"No, you didn't." Enzo rasped, and pushed himself up to meet my intensity, "You didn't choose him. You don't get to choose who you fall in love with. That just happens. He chose you, over himself, by letting you go."

"I didn't mean that I chose to fall in love with him, because no, I did not do that. On paper, that's a terrible idea!"

"And why is that?" He asked.

"Well, I killed his brother, with my brother, in self-defense. And his other brother murdered my aunt, and knocked up my best friend. But, that's the lesser of the sins, obviously, whatever, they're making it work." I rambled and re-centered, "I am pretty much indestructible. There is nothing to worry about to go to those extremes."

"There are worse ways to kill a person, than simply destroying their physical body." Enzo declared, "Their soul. Joy. Potential. Capacity for happiness. What makes them, them."

"They didn't kill you." I shot back.

Enzo looked at me for a moment, before uttering, "You're evidently not a very good listener, if you truly believe that."

I stared back at Enzo, heatedly, quite confused. Before I could clarify what I meant by that, Damon and Elena came into the library.

"Sorry. Are we interrupting something?" Elena asked, loudly, and suddenly the tables were notably turned. Enzo and I were the ones bringing the awkward emotional energy to the group.

Suddenly, and perhaps mercifully, there was a loud knock at the door. Luke, the twin brother of a Gemini Witch named Liv, was here to suggest that these visions were not only bringing Elena and Stefan together, but also bringing the doppelgangers towards the Travelers...for some weird, creepy, unknown, prophetic reasoning that was still left blank. The leader of these Travelers had returned from the Other Side as a result of the mass burning to death sacrifice of his followers, and none of that spelled good news.

Another vision of Elena's later provided an address; it was marked on the mail sent to her perfect home with Stefan. Damon and Enzo followed the tip, quite happily, to seek out the mysterious Markos, and kindly request that he turn off the doppel-visions, should that be within his remit.

* * *

Damon came back to the house later on that night, minus his side-kick.

"Where's Enzo?" I asked him.

He closed the door behind him, and scoffed at me, "You care? That's cute. He hung back to get another lead on Maggie."

"Another bullshit lead." I muttered, and gestured, "Elena's upstairs. Whatever you did worked. Visions are gone."

"Won't be long." Damon rasped quietly.

I stared back at him, confused by his suddenly reserved demeanor, and he sauntered upstairs to speak to Elena. I settled down to my reheated pizza slices, and not five minutes later, Damon sauntered back down the stairs, and straight out the front door, out of his own house. Um...what? I found myself quietly missing Enzo and his super-hearing.

Elena eventually came downstairs and found me. She looked emotional.

"What was that?" I hesitated to ask.

"That was...the end of us...any kind of us." Elena somewhat explained. I sat back quietly and waited until she was ready to elaborate, "I told him that the visions were...perfect. Stefan and I were married. Had kids. Beautiful, huge house...but it wasn't real. Damon and I...we are messy and we are complicated, but we are real. And...I still need him in my life. But he said that was too hard. He...he doesn't want to see me anymore, hear my voice, talk to me, not even look at me."

I wanted to tell her in that moment that I completely understood the whole 'Real. Messy. Complicated.' inexplicable feeling, but I had been told so very recently, and much to my chagrin, that I was a terrible listener. So, I reached out and pulled my sister into a tight embrace as she broke down in floods of tears.


	66. I Don't Think Any Less Of You

**Salvatore Boarding House - Lounge**

I came downstairs that morning to find Luke, eyes closed, chanting away on the couch, and Damon watching him, intently. He was attempting to perform a locator spell to figure out where Enzo was. The Travelers had finally granted Enzo a grain of information regarding the whereabouts of Maggie James...a photograph of the woman, decapitated, back in the 60s. He immediately went after our resident Ripper, assuming that he was to blame. But it turned out that his Stockholm Syndrome Soulmate had run in to Damon that night, completely devoid of his humanity.

Damon had thankfully managed to talk Enzo down from mass murder, but after such heartache, his switch was firmly flipped, and then he just buggered off to Cape Horn, supposedly. Luke could neither confirm nor deny that last part. Damon listened to one more line of chanting and then he lobbed a few ice cubes at Luke's face. I pulled the ice bucket out of the impatient toddler's reach, and gave him a look. Luke informed us on the futility of the exercise; something was wrong or off about Enzo. Luke had the ability to find any person, anywhere on the planet, but he could not get a read on Enzo.

It made no sense. Enzo had flipped his humanity switch; there should have been a body count all the way to the airport. Stefan chimed in, questioning Damon's reasons to search once again and posed that another witch was blocking Luke's efforts; Enzo clearly didn't want to be found, so we should all just drop it. I didn't know exactly what had gone down between the two of them last night, but Stefan's disdain for Enzo was officially maxed out this morning.

"We have a problem." Tyler declared, after bursting through the front door. We all tensed up at his sudden reappearance. His expression was earnest, and he was a little out of breath, desperate to relay his message. We were mostly sure that this was in fact our Tyler. He told us, "Markos turned Sloan into a vampire, had her drink doppelganger blood, and after some chanting ritual thing, she turned human again."

"He cured her?" I asked him.

"He cured her to death." Tyler explained, "The blood took away her vampirism but left her in the state that she was in just before she turned."

"That state being...dead. Got it." Stefan sighed.

The travelers wanted to get rid of all magic so that they can break 'some lame-ass witch curse' as Tyler so eloquently put it. They couldn't settle anywhere without evoking earthquakes or hell-fire, but if they break that curse, they could move right on into Mystic Falls...and come after Stefan and Elena.

"Oh, well. Markos had a good week or two in the land of the living." Damon sang and asked Tyler, "Now, where is he so I can kill him?"

"No idea." Tyler said, genuinely, "They were moving camp when I got out."

"Well, good news." Damon declared, sarcastically, "Our friend Luke here is an alleged genius at locator spells."

"Travelers are always moving." Luke whined back, "They're impossible to track. They'll find Stefan and Elena long before we can find them."

"Well, what about one of those locator spell blocker deals that Enzo has supposedly employed? Is that simple enough for you?" Damon scorned at him.

"If both doppelgangers are in the same place, yeah." Luke replied.

"Perfect." Damon smirked. He turned to Tyler, and demanded, "You avoid the entire Czech language, and figure out how to find Markos."

"How am I supposed to do that?" Tyler asked him, dryly.

"Well, you have a Traveler inside of you. I mean, I have probably misplaced faith that you'll figure it out. Little Gilbert summon the other Hardy Boys and bash all your heads together, maybe something of an idea will fall out." Damon ordered. He turned back to Stefan, and said, "Meanwhile, you and I and our ex-girlfriend are gonna go on a little secret trip."

"Sounds great." Stefan drawled.

* * *

 **Salvatore Boarding House - Basement**

Matt was securing Tyler to the basement pipes with heavy-duty chains. I surveyed the dusty room and thought about how many people had rotted away for a few days down here. Some more deserving than others...ahem, Damon.

"Can I get a minute with Ro, alone?" Tyler asked after Matt was done.

"Sure, man." Matt said, and left us alone in the Salvatore's creepy basement prison.

"This is a really stupid idea." I told Tyler.

"Some freak is inside my body. He took over my life. God only knows what he's got planned for me, and no one has any better ideas, so...this is what we're doing." Tyler said, tersely, and then his expression softened somewhat, "And that's not what I wanted to say. I wanted to apologize for what I said to you at that party, about what happened in the Bayou."

"Ty...it's okay." I said.

"No, it's not. Look, I heard you broke it off with Elijah." He said, "And I'm not happy you got hurt, or that you're sad. But...my feelings on that family are pretty clear. So...I'm happy for you. Can't pretend otherwise."

"I know. You suck at lying." I said, with a shrug.

"You're not my enemy. Never were. You were one of my best friends, and then our lives just got crazy." He said.

"Tyler. You're doing the whole 'maybe I'm going to die in a minute, so I should get this all out' thing, again, and you never have to do that with me. Okay? I get it. You don't need to apologize, and even if I was still being a dick about it all, it's kind of hard to be mad at you right now." I scoffed and pointed at his chains.

Tyler laughed, and the tension, or beef, or weird off-vibes between us dissipated, and we were just two old friends trying to provoke and lure out a stranger residing inside one of them. Yeah, super normal Friday night. Matt, Bonnie and Jeremy joined us.

"One part wolfsbane, one part vervain." Jeremy declared, presenting what looked like a regular water bottle to the boys, "All together, the dumbest idea that either of you have ever had."

"Don't look at me." Matt scoffed, "This is all Ty."

"These should hold." Tyler said, tugging on his bindings, "Let's do this."

"Not to be a total girl about this, but...I can't watch. I'm gonna go upstairs." I said, "Bonnie?"

"Yes, please." Bonnie said keenly, and left with me.

* * *

"So, stiff drink? Music turned up way too loud? Discuss that awful patchy facial hair that Jeremy is really not rocking?" I suggested.

As we were walking back upstairs, Bonnie's phone jingled.

"Yes, to all of that! Oh. It's Stefan. I'll catch up." Bonnie informed me, with a little smile, and then disappeared into another room to take the call, "Stefan, hey. Remind me why I passed on the cloaking spell party again?"

That was...uh, odd. Since when did we need to have super secret conversations away from each other? Surely whatever Stefan had to say wasn't even a secret? It was either 'hey, just checking in, what's the update on the traveler interrogation?', or 'hello there, I'd like to report a disturbance at _our_ super secret hideout'. There was no need for secrets. Especially, the super secret kind. And, okay, I'm not proud of it, but I traced the path Bonnie had just taken, quietly, and waited outside the door, listening in.

Bonnie sighed heavily at whatever Stefan had just said, and she asked him, "Why? Actually, yeah. My grams knocked a lamp right off my desk today. I don't know how, and I doubt it's easy, but if someone over there were emotional enough then yes, they can now physically affect this plane...you think it was Enzo?"

Grams can smack lamps. Grams is on the Other Side. Someone over there. Enzo. I think the idea of what to do with that information had snapped into place as soon as she'd said his name. An excruciating minute passed, and Bonnie emerged from the lounge, and slammed straight into my disbelief.

"Crap." She huffed out.

"Enzo's dead." I rasped.

Bonnie's face crumpled, and she nodded. She told me, "Yes. Stefan killed him. And he asked me not to tell Damon, or you, you know...given your little road trip bonding, heated arguing over life's philosophical mysteries...thing. Wait! ROSANNA?! Where are you going?"

* * *

 **Bill Forbes' Cabin - Storage Barn**

"You missed a killer game of Never Have I Ever." Stefan said, somewhat sheepishly.

"Never have I ever had a ghost try to burn me alive." I said.

Stefan pretended to knock a shot back. Enzo had attempted to burn down the barn with Luke, Stefan and Damon trapped inside. It wasn't hard to find them. I simply had to follow the smoke and blazing flames. Damon had made an impassioned plea to the ghost of Enzo that he could bring him back; Bonnie came back, Markos came back, I come back all the time. I reminded him I've never actually been on the Other Side, I'm not a part of that equation. Damon insisted I shut up, and that he would find a way. Stefan had managed to pull Luke out of the blaze. I'd managed to divert the flames away from Damon, who was pinned against the barn wall with a rather large wooden beam running right the way through his torso like a kebab, long enough to implore Enzo to see reason: he could only mess with them like this because the Other Side was falling apart. He could either help Damon, or blink out of existence. It was Enzo's choice. Enzo chose to put a pin in his revenge...I assumed, by the abrupt yanking out of Damon's skewer.

"We're friends, right?" I asked Stefan, "We tell each other things, we trust each other."

"Ro, it's not because I didn't trust you." Stefan said.

"No. It's just that you trust Bonnie more, and I get it. Of course you would. She's the one that's literally going to feel him passing through her. Can't keep that one a secret." I said, "Still sucks to be left out of the loop, you know?"

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, there are things that I tell you that I don't tell anyone else." Stefan said.

"Like what?" I asked.

"Like you have dirt on your cheek." Stefan laughed and wiped away it away, "Might be soot. And look. Maybe I didn't want you to know that I killed Enzo."

"Why?" I asked.

"Because I know you, and I know you guys had that weird little chemistry thing going on." Stefan said.

"Oh, please! You're delusional." I scoffed.

Stefan smiled, and then he said, "I didn't want you to think any less of me."

I didn't know what to say to that. Did I?

"Hey! Are you guys ready?" Caroline asked, bouncing along the path.

"Yeah. Just a sec. Be right there." Stefan called out to her. She stopped and bounced her way back towards the house. Stefan turned back and he told me, "I'll, uh, I'll meet you over by the car when you're done."

He left me in the glow of the burning barn and followed the path to catch up with Caroline. I watched him walk away for a little while and then I turned back to face the barn. I thought for another minute and then I sighed, feeling suddenly self-conscious.

"I don't know where to look." I told the barn, "I doubt you're still in there. Maybe you feel the toasty warmness now? Is that another one of the 'Other Side falling apart' symptoms? Maybe that's nice. Is it cold there? I don't know. Not important. Tangent. Um, that's where I know for a fact you were before, so I will just tell the barn." I glanced around at the surrounding area, checking that Damon wasn't about to jump out and call me a nut job. I sighed again, and I said, "You misunderstood me the other night. I didn't mean to belittle what you went through. What I meant was...no, they didn't kill you, or your sense of humour, or your capacity for kindness, and humility. I mean, you offered to take the hit in Atlanta, to take the blood off my hands. You forgave Damon once before. You didn't kill Elena. And, okay, I'm not exactly thrilled about the kidnapping, or the drowning. That really sucks! But, I don't think you're a bad person. That's what I meant, by what I said. I'm sorry for your loss...and _your_ loss."

I don't know exactly what I was expecting; a rogue piece of torched wood spat out of the barn; a snarky joke about missing him already all written out in twigs; a mischievous tap on the other shoulder. I would have taken anything in that moment. Enzo told me many months later, that he had hung back, and heard every word.


	67. A Divine Idea

**Salvatore Boarding House**

"Ah! Barbs. Remind me to add _carrying_ to the list of things that Matt Donovan can't do well, but it's okay! He'll repay me with his salary from the Grill...he just has to work a couple thousand years!" Damon sneered as he picked up the shards of broken vase and tossed them into a trashcan.

"Why don't you do us all a favor and start dating Elena again?" I asked him, with a smirk.

"Why don't you make yourself useful, and patrol the town with Dumb and Dumber? They just left. Call me if you see anything weirder than usual." Damon scorned.

"Okay. Here's a humdinger: there are _a lot_ of lifeless bodies dumped in your den." I sneered, "Way more than usual."

Damon ignored me, and staged a pool cue into the scene, making it look like the flopped over man was lining up a shot. The entire room was littered with random people gracelessly slumped in chairs, on tables, piled up on the floor. They weren't splattered with blood, which deducted one entire creepy point from the whole affair, but it didn't exactly look like they were all having an afternoon nap in here.

"What the hell is going on, Damon?" I asked, "Who are your friends?"

"Traveler husks!" Damon declared, theatrically, "They've passengered themselves inside the beautiful citizens of Mystic Falls."

"Okaaaay-and what are you planning on doing with all of them, exactly?" I asked him, tentatively.

"Well, Markos put them in a cave. I'm hoping he wants them back." He said, plainly.

"So, you think that drawing Markos to our house is the _best_ idea?" I asked him.

"It'll be _our_ house the second you start coughing up rent, Barbie." Damon scoffed, and turned back to his comatose guests...or hostages, I guess, and declared, "It's not the best, but it's the _only_ idea we have! Unless your body snatched ex-boyfriend in the basement can help us."

"Julian is not Tyler. Therefore, he has no reason to help us." I reminded him, "So, until we figure out a way to get Tyler back, he's just extra baggage."

"There's no shame in giving up." Damon said, feigning concern, "I mean, aren't we all a little sick of Tyler?"

"You know what?" I scoffed, "Your whole 'I'm too cool to care' thing is really starting to get old, and don't think for one second that I believe your mood has nothing to do with Elena."

"Spare me the unsolicited relationship advice, Blondie!" Damon groaned, "You got dumped by _Tyler Lockwood_ , and banged two Originals. Love Whisperer, you ain't."

"ONE Original." I scorned back, and faltered, scrambling to think why _that_ fact mattered.

"Even worse!" Damon whined, "You're officially the last guy I'm ever turning to for love advice."

"Whatever!" I barked back at him, "Just keep your torture happy hands off of Tyler until I figure something out. _I_ don't abandon the people I care about."

I smirked in his face and then stormed out of the room.

"Urgh, Enzo got over that faster than you, and he's the one I left behind!" Damon hollered after me.

* * *

 **Salvatore Boarding House - Basement**

I found myself back in the creepy basement a lot sooner than I'd hoped, much sooner than never; this time with a complete stranger wearing the mask of one of my oldest friends; the staring was not within my control.

"Quit hovering. It's weird." Julian/Tyler scorned at me.

"You're like.. permanently inhabiting my ex-boyfriend. Let's debate the level of weird." I laughed.

"If he's an ex, then why do you care?" Julian asked, snottily.

"Because he's a person...whose life you stole without asking." I said, "He deserves to be fought for."

"Whatever." Julian huffed out.

I rolled my eyes, convinced that this was an exercise in futility, but I decided to stay, and fight grump with more grump.

"Why can't Markos and the other Travelers find some place else to live?" I asked him, tersely.

"It's nice here." Julian said with a little shrug, and explained, "Besides, it's not just about breaking the curse that keeps us from being able to settle. It's revenge against all of the things the witches stand for: every grimoire, every talisman, every vampire, right down to their daylight rings. The Travelers see it all as a perversion of pure magic. Markos wants to destroy that perversion. He wants to restore the balance. And I'm puzzled to find an Angel taking up arms on the wrong side. It's kind of your sole purpose for walking this Earth, in this form, is it not? To restore balance?"

"So, Markos is doing my divine work for me?" I drawled, "Top guy."

"Someone has to." Julian shot back, "If you have fallen, and failed."

I stared back at him, incredulously, and shook my head a little. I told him, "You're wrong."

"No. None of this is wrong, when you think about it. If anything, it's kind of right." Julian posed.

"I can make anything sound right if I think about it too long, if I twist it all up and around, until it neatly follows my narrative. Doesn't make it _right_." I said, "Wiping out an entire species does not create balance, the scales simply tip from one extreme to the next. I _am_ doing my job, Julian, and I'm sorry that doesn't align with what Markos wants."

"He was right. You have fallen." Julian declared, sharply, "You sympathize with Heathens."

"Well, I'm touched that your cult leader takes an interest in little old me, and what I'm up to." I laughed, and asked him, "Was that a hard sell for him? Fighting against an Angel, an entity _not_ of the heathen spirit magic? An entity your doctrine suggests you're supposed to revere? Oh, but if I've fallen, and failed, and freaking fucked up, that would make it much easier to swallow, I guess. Much easier to get your followers to do your bidding."

"Laugh now. Laugh long. While you still can. When it comes to getting what he wants, Markos doesn't have much of a sense of humor." Julian declared.

I suddenly smiled wildly, and whispered to him, "Thank you, Julian, you've given me a divine idea."

* * *

 **Whitmore College - Caroline, Elena and Bonnie's Dorm Room**

I watched Bonnie pack more of her belongings away neatly into a box. She hummed intermittently as I relayed my conversation with Julian, but she wasn't really listening to me, not fully, she was consumed with her menial task at hand. Then, I laid out the crux of my grand plan to my not-so-captive audience, "So, Julian is trapped inside of Tyler's hybrid body, and that's gonna be forever or until he dies, whichever comes first. So, I was thinking...what if he does die? You know, _maybe_ that's how we do it! That's how we get him out of there, for good!"

Bonnie spun, and asked, with a brow that was close to hitting the ceiling, "You want to kill Tyler?"

"Yes!" I exclaimed, with undoubtedly as much fervor as the guy who'd just invented sliced bread. It was bordering on Caroline-level enthusiasm. I explained, "He'll go to the Other Side and then, when Liv does the spell to help you and Enzo, Tyler can come back too!"

Bonnie didn't say anything. Her eyes darted around a little, and then she just continued to pack up her room. Okay...

"Um, and speaking of, shouldn't you be like, preparing...or talking to Liv? Or doing anything other than packing up your dorm room?" I asked her.

"We have to be out of here right after finals, which I might skip, due to the potential extinction of magic in the place where I was spending my summer break." Bonnie some-what explained.

"I think the Other Side falling apart is slightly more pressing than late housing fees?" I asked.

Bonnie tossed her box down onto her bed and bunched her shoulders up. She rubbed her face with her hands in frustration, and then she snapped back to face me, head on, and huffed out, "There is no spell! I made it up! The Other Side is collapsing and everyone in it, including me, is going away for good!"

I looked at Bonnie, blankly.

She composed herself, and she declared, "So, no. I don't think that you should kill Tyler."

Another second of exchanging confused blank stares with each other passed, and then Caroline burst into the room. She looked between Bonnie and I, with a dark look on her face, and she exhaled deeply. She slammed the door behind her, put her phone away, neatly, into her back pocket and then informed us, "We...should be packing."

"What?" Bonnie asked, "What happened, Caroline?"

"They did the spell. The Travelers." Caroline explained. She picked up a spare bag, and started shoving clothes into it, "Spirit magic is unraveling in Mystic Falls as we speak. We're all going back to how we were before vampirism. That was Stefan, he got shot. Elena started drowning again!"

"WHAT?!" I bellowed, "Is she okay?"

"They managed to outrun it, for now!" Caroline said, "He can't get a hold of Damon, but we need to go, get out of here, for good, we-we don't have a lot of time. I don't fancy being smothered to death all over again!" Caroline continued to fling their belongings into random bags, and ramble all the while, "What are we even suppose to take? Photos, clothes, hair products? Not that any of that matters when we're all dead!"

Bonnie wandered over to her bed, and sat down, in silence.

"Why are you just sitting there?!" Caroline whined at her.

Bonnie uttered, quietly, "I'm thinking."

"Well, think while you pack!" Caroline insisted, "Death is literally on its way. So, pack whatever will fit in these. The rest, we'll...never see again!"

Bonnie remained oddly complacent about the whole thing, so Caroline shoved an empty bag into my hands and begged me to pack for her.

"Hello! Bonnie!" Caroline cried out, "Which part of "we're about to die" isn't registering?"

Bonnie jerked, and suddenly shot back up to her feet. She rasped, "I think I know how to get us all back from the Other Side. Of course! We take the exact same route the Travelers took. I need to find Enzo. Ro, come with me, I need you to think about nothing but Enzo."

* * *

Caroline had gone on ahead to wait for Stefan and the others to arrive at the rendez-vous point: Whitmore's parking lot. I thought long and hard about Betty-Sue's pancakes, and that was enough to draw out Enzo's spirit. Bonnie sent Enzo on an Other Side errand: find Maria, Julian's girlfriend; she would know the spell that the Travelers used to overwhelm the Anchor, and come back from the Other Side, and hopefully, for the low, low price of coming back to life, she'd be willing to help us. We waited in the lounge for his timely return.

"Should we leave?" I asked her, "You said that last vampire died on Old Miller Road? The spell has officially passed Mystic Falls, we don't know what it will do to you."

"It'll take away magic that's already gone." Bonnie rasped, monotonously, "I'm the last person we have to worry about."

"Okay. So...riddle me this, we get Liv to do the magic spell that Enzo's fetching. She channels a source _pure_ magic, i.e. me. They all bum-rush the Anchor. We still need a bunch of Travelers to sacrifice...who are conveniently hiding inside the anti-magic border. How do we do that?"

"We...will figure that out." Bonnie said.

"This plan of yours, it won't stop the destruction of the Other Side, and you can't...pass through yourself." I reminded her.

Bonnie looked at me with a face that said it all; it wasn't one of defeat, it looked a lot like...acceptance. Before I could say anything, her eyes widened suddenly, and she asked the thin air in front of us, "What's wrong?"

I looked at the blank space before her, and assumed that Enzo was smirking back at her.

"What the hell happened?!" Bonnie whined, "Maria was the only one who was willing to help us who knew the spell!"

"Bonnie?" I asked, tentatively, not certain I wanted the Other Side translation service at all.

"Maria got sucked up into nothingness." Bonnie replied, and then she froze, and she began to tremble. She looked behind the blank space, at another bunch of emptiness, and she whispered Stefan's name.

I stood up.

Bonnie's lower lip began to tremble, and she uttered, "This can't be happening." She shook her head, weakly, and she cried out, "I lost it. I'm sorry."

She crumpled, and she wrapped her arms around her own body in agony as Stefan passed through to the Other Side.


	68. This Is Goodbye

**Graveyard - Crypt**

Jeremy had walked around Mystic Falls that morning to see where his Hunter instincts disappeared, resulting in a crude map of where the anti-magic border began. Mystic Falls Cemetery was just outside the no-magic perimeter, so it was decided that the spell would be conducted there. Elena and Caroline managed to persuade Liv to come do the spell, by murdering her twin brother, and thus adding her own personal stake in our cause.

The final piece of the puzzle was conducting the mass murder of a bunch of Travelers. Sheriff Forbes handed over the town to Markos with a degree of civility; she evacuated the entire town by spouting a phony tale about a gas leak. There was some truth to her story. A major gas line _did_ run right underneath the town, and a certain establishment sat right on top of it. She was going to convince the Travelers to gather inside the Grill. Matt and Jeremy would turn on the gas, and then bolt out of there. Explosion. Spell. Cross over.

Liv sauntered inside the Crypt, followed by her stone-faced guard, Caroline. I assured her we'd be fine from here, certain that Caroline was so broken from Stefan's potentially-temporary demise that she was simply itching for any reason to hurt someone.

"I don't think we've officially been introduced: I'm Liv." Liv said, and extended her hand out in fake cordiality, "Gemini Witch being held against her will."

"Rosanna." I said and accepted her hand, in equal disdain, "Sister of the doppelganger you tried to murder. I'll be your source of channeling today."

Liv spread out a bunch of candles, and I mean...a hundred at least, and then she requested that I do my thing. I obliged, and performed the parlor trick for her. She settled down on a small mat before her fiery congregation, closed her eyes and mentally prepared herself to start the spell.

"You'll be weakened by this." Liv explained, "A little at first, so little that you won't notice. But the longer we go-"

"Just do it." I cut her off, and slumped down beside her.

She smirked and she blew out one candle, the littlest one, and glanced at the clock on her phone: 6:59 pm. Liv nodded at me and then she started chanting, with a hearty depth to her voice, which grew ever louder, "Ohto Eestanay As Vazat. Esvet Ohnaz Eespalit. Ohto Eestanay As Vazat. Esvet Ohnaz Eespalit."

 _Here we go, again._

* * *

Time stopped in that crypt. Nothing happened. Nothing new anyway. I was weakened by the channeling, but not nearly enough to whine or complain about it; I was more frustrated, than anything. The spell was clearly taking a much more physical toll on Liv. She coughed and spluttered mid-sentence as though she were choking on the words themselves.

Luke suddenly burst into the crypt, scoured for his sister and skidded to his knees before her.

"Hey." He whispered at her, and caressed her face.

Liv was completely overwhelmed, and distracted by his return to the land of the living. It was working. We were doing it. She smiled at him, and almost collapsed immediately after.

"You need to stop, now. Okay?" Luke implored, as he helped his sister back up, "If you keep going, it's going to kill you."

"NO!" I begged of them, and looked around the room, desperately.

"No." Liv insisted, fiercely, "I promised that I'd help them."

I sent the flickering flames of the candles soaring skywards, bellowing up to the roof of the crypt. Luke staggered backward in sheer fright from the sudden ferocity. I stumbled myself, struggling to stand up on my own two feet, weakened so by the displacement of my power.

"Just, use it, okay?!" I begged of Liv, "Just hang on! And I will be right back! We can do this! Please..."

Liv nodded, weakly, and she started chanting again, "Ohto Eestanay As Vazat..."

* * *

 **Graveyard - Grounds**

I staggered out of the crypt, clambering across the wall for support, and saw my sister materialize out of thin air inside Bonnie's hands.

"Elena! Thank God!" Caroline squealed, and collided with her friend.

"No!" Elena cried out in agony, and peeled herself out of Caroline's grasp, "Bonnie! Why would you do that?! I can't leave without him!"

"We will find him!" Bonnie barked back, and returned to scouring the thin air.

"Wait?" I huffed out, quietly, and met them, "What's going on? Who are we missing?"

"Where's Stefan?!" Caroline cried out, "Shouldn't you be with Liv?!"

Our feverish line of questioning ended instantly when Bonnie started coughing up blood.

Elena crowded her and asked, "Are you okay?"

"Oh my god! Bonnie?!" Caroline whined.

Bonnie's eyes glazed over and she stumbled to the ground, but from the Other Side, Stefan stopped her fall, and he was forced back over to the living plane.

"No. No. No." Stefan huffed out, repeatedly. He looked horrified at what had just happened. He muttered, "I was just trying..."

"What's wrong?" Caroline asked him.

"She fell! I was just trying—" Stefan rasped out, painfully, "Damon. He's not there yet."

Elena's eyes welled up with tears and she shook her head in fierce denial. She whispered, shakily, "This isn't happening."

"It's okay." Bonnie insisted, weakly, "I can do this."

"No. Take it." I demanded, and offered her my hand.

"You're...NO. I can't. Liv is taking-" Bonnie groaned.

"Bonnie! PLEASE!" Elena screamed at her.

"She's fine. For now. Take my hand!" I barked at Bonnie.

* * *

I was doubled over, struggling to hold on to both Bonnie's hand, and consciousness.

 _Long time, no see._

"Shut up." I huffed out.

 _The scale is tipping. You're failing. You're asking too much. It's personal work._

"Shut up!" I screamed out. Bonnie's eyes snapped onto me. She asked me something. But I couldn't hear it. He was talking too loud.

 _It was your metaphor, not mine._

"NOT NOW!" I barked back.

 _If not now, then when?_

"Thank god!" Bonnie huffed out, "It's them. Ric...D-Damon. They're here!"

Bonnie grabbed thin air, and Alaric appeared within her grasp. I saw only his fuzzy outline. My eyes started to haze over, and the ground became considerably...ocean-like. Bonnie's voice was warping, but I think she said something about making it through. We'd done it. Everyone. We were all okay. We were all...here.

 _I had such high hopes for you._

"Come on." Bonnie's wobbly voice said, and then, she screamed. And I screamed.

Our energy collided; it was like a star ship bolting off at warp speed. My ears popped and screeched. Bonnie was snatched out of my grasp, and repelled backwards. I slammed down into the ground with such ferocity I barrel-rolled across the graveyard. This was the exact moment that Luke had taken my displaced power and used it to cut off Liv's spell. I came to with Damon hovering over me.

"Barbie. What the hell?!" He groaned out.

He looked...scared. He pulled me up off the ground, carefully, and I embraced him, tightly.

"You're okay." I whispered into his embrace.

"I...wouldn't celebrate just yet, kid." Damon said, awkwardly.

I backed up and saw the sheepish expression to match his tone. I scanned his eyes and I asked him, "What?"

Damon shook his head, and he told me, "I'm not back."

"Then...then, what? Why can I see you?" I asked.

Elena had just watched her sister get pulled up by nothing, and then embrace thin air; we'd grown accustomed to Bonnie being this weirdo, but it was decidedly jarring seeing another person do it. Stefan had pulled up Bonnie. Her forehead was cut from the impact, but it healed right before my very eyes. Bonnie caressed her head, and we just stared at each other. My wounds were not healing.

"What the hell was that?!" Elena cried out to anyone, shakily.

"Oh." That was all I could say in the first breath. I gathered another, and uttered, "I think Bonnie and I…"

"Bonnie and you, what?" Elena cried, "What happened?!"

I pointed to Damon, who was stood right beside me, and I asked Bonnie, "You can't see him, can you?"

Bonnie shook her head once. Her eyes never left mine, but I knew, down in the pit of my very soul, that she was not lying to me. She knew what this meant.

"Him?!" Elena screamed, and shook her friend's arm, "Damon?! Bonnie get him!"

Bonnie looked down at the palm of her hand, and she saw a small dancing flame flicker away.

"Oh." I huffed out, feebly, and felt the tears bubble over and trickle down my now burning cheeks.

"What does this mean, Bonnie? BONNIE?" Damon bellowed at her, with no response. He realised his error, and implored me, "Ask her!"

"What-what does this mean?" I asked Bonnie, breathily, "Tell them."

Bonnie's eyes were lined with tears and she trembled. She shook her head and she said, quietly, "We were connected. The spell must have been interrupted."

* * *

 **Graveyard - Crypt**

Elena led the charge inside the crypt and saw nothing but the scattered remnants of the spell; candles smoking, wax splattered across the cold stone floor.

"Oh my god." Elena cried out, "Liv? LIV?!"

She looked around desperately for Liv, but their was no sign of her, or her brother.

"Bonnie!" Elena cried out, "We need to find them. We need to start the spell again!"

"We can't! That was our one shot." Bonnie said.

"Yeah, but...come on, Rosanna, try!" Elena implored, "Try and channel Bonnie! It was your power, just think of that! Damon is still on the Other Side, we have to-"

"ELENA." Bonnie barked out, struggling to contain her emotions. She shook her head, and she insisted, "It's too late."

"No." Elena said, over and over again. She broke down into hysterical tears, and she screamed out at the top her lungs, "NO! NO!"

"He's here. He's right here." I told her, "You can say goodbye."

"What do you mean?!" Elena cried out.

"You need to say goodbye, Elena." I told her, sharply, and disappeared out of the crypt, away from the broken mess that used to be my sister.

That was mean, right? I figured I get to be harsh; I'm about to blink out of existence; it won't matter if I'm harsh; I have a decent body of work before some snappy words, I was a good person...I think. They can all cling on to that.

Bonnie followed me outside.

"God...I can't believe this." I whispered into the night sky.

"Rosanna, listen." Bonnie cried to me, "This whole time...I knew all along that there was no way for me to stop being the anchor. I died. I was already dead. This time was a gift-"

"Get my brother, please. Tell him to run." I whispered, "I need to make a call."

Bonnie nodded once, and then sprinted off in the other direction. I took my cellphone out and I scrolled down to find him; it had been a while. He picked up after two rings.

"Elijah." I barely managed to huff out.

"Rosanna." Elijah asked, earnestly, "Are you alright?"

I sighed heavily, enjoyed the sound of his voice, and then I said, "Thank God you answered."

"What's wrong?" He asked, and insisted, "Rosanna. Tell me."

"Something went wrong here." I told him, "The anchor was, is...um... _going_ when the Other Side goes, and I think that's really soon, judging by the...weather."

"Your friend, Bonnie?" Elijah asked, "She cannot be saved?"

"No. I-I don't know how but...I'm the anchor now." I told him, my lower lip trembled as the words spilled out.

"What are you saying?" Elijah seethed, "Rosanna. What is this?"

"This? This is goodbye." I cried out, "And I don't have a lot of time so I need you to hear me. I need to thank you for...for looking out for me, protecting me, loving me. Thank you for choosing me. I tried to stay mad, I tried so hard, but I haven't been, not for a long time. I forgive you."

"No!" Elijah barked down the line, "I don't understand. This isn't it. Listen, I am coming to you right now, okay?"

"Elijah!" I called out over his anger, and I told him, "I won't be here. Please tell Hayley, I love her, and we'll always have Austin...I love you, Elijah."

Elijah stopped, and then he spoke clearly, "I didn't think I ever had to say it, or hear it. Words are never enough, but I do love you, completely, always and forever. We could have been so happy, in another life."

"I was." I rasped out, and hung up quickly.

"He's coming! He's coming as fast as he can!" Bonnie bellowed as she ran up to me.

I shook my head and looked around at the world collapsing around me, a world that Bonnie was no longer privy to. I took her hands into mine, and I told her everything that was bubbling over in my mind, as fast as I could, "I'm out of time, Bon. Please tell them all that I love them so much. And I want them to live every single minute of their lives. And forgive. And be okay. And I want you to promise me that you will look out for Elena. And tell her that I have nothing but love in my heart, and that she is strong and that she can survive anything, even this. And tell Jeremy, god...I'm so sorry that he has to know this pain, it's the worst, but he has to promise me that this won't change him, it won't change who he is, because he's my favourite person-"

I broke down into uncontrollable sobs as Bonnie pulled me into her.

"I promise." Bonnie cried, "I promise you! I will look after everyone. They will all be okay. You don't need to worry."

"You don't need to do much of anything anymore." Damon declared as he appeared behind me.

I glanced back and I nodded at him; this was it. Bonnie knew exactly what I was looking at.

I squeezed Bonnie's hands, and I told her, directly, "Promise me that _you_ will be okay. It is a gift. Okay? This is not on you, okay?"

"I'm so sorry." Bonnie said, and nodded through floods of tears.

 _ROSIE! ROSIE!_

I could hear my brother calling my name, but he was too far away. He wasn't going to make it in time, and maybe...maybe he was better off not seeing this. I saw Bonnie squint into the strengthening wind, and then she whipped her head around to see Jeremy, stood frozen, on the other side of the graveyard.

"Bonnie?" I whispered, but she made no motion that she could hear me.

She walked over to Jeremy, her gait growing ever more unsteady as the rest of our friends and family emerged through the treeline, drawn by Jeremy's hollering.

"What's going on?" Tyler asked, shaking Jeremy's shoulder.

Jeremy had fallen down to his knees. He punched the ground and he screamed out my name, but I couldn't hear it anymore. I couldn't hear anything but that wind, and Damon.

"He saw you." Damon drawled, and coaxed me around to face him, "You don't need to see that."

I nodded a little.

He gestured around and said, "This place is going down, isn't it?"

We surveyed the alarming degree of damage surrounding us, as the last remnants of the living world shattered and disintegrated into nothing. Searing rays of light pierced their way through the outer edges of the Other Side; the intense light and the violent winds kicking up around us bunched up our shoulders and our expressions alike.

"It is." I huffed out and I shook my head a little, struggling to compose myself through all of the emotions and thoughts swirling around inside of me. I clung on to one idea: I have one last choice to make... _I'm gonna be brave_. 'I've done this before' my inner comedian chuckled at me...one last time, Rosanna...and you're not alone. I looked over at Damon and I said, "I'm sure there are a million people we'd rather be with right now, but-"

I took Damon's hand into mine and our fingers intertwined.

Damon shrugged, and he scoffed, "A couple thousand, at most."

I smiled up at him, and then winced at the giant orbs of light ripping their way through the tree-tops. I'd staggered back into Damon, and he had wrapped his arms around me, protectively.

"Do you think it'll hurt?" I asked him, and buried my face into his chest, as the fabric of reality itself was completely eviscerated, leaving nothing but light. I never heard his answer. I didn't hear anything. No wind. No noise. No hearts beating. No thoughts. No fears. Nothing. Nothing but light.


	69. Blink

The Other Side was no more. It was gone. And yet...I knew that. I still knew that. I was thinking. I was...still thinking. I peeped an eye open. We should have been...dust or ghosts or nothing at all by now, right? I blinked harshly as my eyes adjusted: white-hot brightness dissipated and darkness returned; the dark of night. I peeled myself off Damon, out of our deathbed embrace, and we exchanged a confused look with one another.

"Huh. That got awkward fast." Damon muttered.

Everything was fast, and intense, and then...nothing, normal? We were standing in the exact same spot in the woods, right by the cemetery, but there was no one else around. I would never forget the sound of Jeremy screaming out my name, but I couldn't hear it. He wasn't here. The rapid wind had died right down to complete pin-drop stillness.

"What happened? Where is everybody?" I thought out loud, and headed towards the crypt.

"Where are you going? Hey." Damon hollered.

We wandered back into the center of town, our senses heightened to the silence, waiting for anything to shatter the constant; a flash of something, a rattle of anything. I mentally prayed for a jump scare.

"Well, I feel a fang," Damon declared, fiddling around in his mouth, "I'm still a vampire. Either I'm a dead vampire or Mystic Falls is no longer magic free."

"Look," I said, and pointed over to the very much intact Mystic Grill.

Damon followed my gaze and crumpled up his face. He looked back and forth between us, and assured me, "I definitely blew that up about an hour ago."

"Why don't we see any people?" I asked him, and posed, "if we're still on the Other Side we should at least be able to see the living, right?"

Damon, for perhaps the first time in our acquaintance, had nothing to say. He simply looked around at the Twilight Zone we'd slipped into and muttered, "where the hell are we? And I don't mean geographically."

"I have no idea."

* * *

 **Day One**

I didn't count that first night when I started officially tallying up the days we spent in this purgatory; like when you go on vacation, the day you spend travelling to your destination doesn't really count. I thought about our family vacations. I thought about a heated discussion we had in class once about the existence of heaven and hell. I thought about a lot of things. I thought I was going mad.

We hadn't actually slept. We'd been wandering down the deserted streets of Mystic Falls all night. We started in the middle and then taper off, taking turns to peer into shop windows, down alleyways, behind cars.

"How many more streets are we going to wander?" Damon groaned, and slung his leather jacket over his shoulder.

I glared back at him, and snapped, "how many times are you going to ask me questions I don't have the answers to? Huh?"

Damon looked back at me. I looked at him. We continued in silence. More silence. Everything was silent.

"There's something weird about these cars," I said, and stopped over at one.

"Yeah. They're almost all 20 years old or more and yet they look brand new," Damon said. He ran his hand over the hood, admiring the thing, and then looked up across the street. Admiration disappeared from his face, washed over with disbelief. He pointed, noting, "-and that is your not-so-burnt-to-a-crisp house."

It was. It was my...the Gilbert house; freshly-mowed grass, brand new toys littering the front yard, impeccable paint job. I was carried over towards the picture perfect backdrop of every childhood memory I had, without conscious thought guiding my limbs. Damon plucked up the newspaper plopped on our front lawn, and unfolded it. He hummed.

I peeled my eyes from the building and asked, "hmm?"

Damon turned and held out the paper so that I could read it, and said, "look."

I craned my neck and read, "rare solar eclipse expected to be seen across 12 states?"

Damon rolled his eyes and groaned out, "the date!"

"May 10th...1994," I said, and squinted, "is that-? Are we-? But that's impossible. 18 years of impossible."

Suddenly, the sky turned a darker shade of blue, the aforementioned eclipse was blotting out the sun.

"I don't think we should be asking where we are," Damon said, "I think we should be asking _when_ we are."

* * *

Damon swung on the porch swing, his head tilted back, eyes closed. I finished my detailed tactile exploration of the entire front yard and perched on the top of the steps, with a toy digger of Jeremy's that I would later vandalize and turn into Barbie's favourite mode of transport, and a teddy-bear that was officially retired as M.I.A. around 1998.

"Who's your friend?" Damon muttered, disinterestedly.

"This is Ms. Cuddles! I'm gonna lose her in around...4 years time," I informed him.

"I wonder if there's any booze in this empty retroville?" Damon asked the sky.

"It feels so weird to be back here, seeing all this stuff," I thought out loud.

Damon's head flopped forward and he asked, "why aren't you going in?"

I pushed the digger around, absentmindedly, and shrugged.

Damon stopped swinging and sighed, "alright then, talk me through it. What's whirling around in that head of yours?"

"Before the Other Side collapsed, Bonnie said something about her Grams and a sacrifice that she made so that Bonnie could find peace," I informed him, and teased it out in my own mind, "she said that she wasn't afraid to die. And not in that...Bonnie to the rescue way. She just wasn't scared."

"-the part where you actually have a theory?" Damon requested.

I rolled my eyes, and then the digger, with a little more gusto, towards Damon, and quipped, "well, this clearly isn't peace, otherwise I wouldn't be stuck here with you."

Damon caught the runaway toy, and gasped, "rude."

I sat back and posed, "she must have-I don't know, tried to send Bonnie...or _me_ somewhere. And when I held your hand...I must have taken you with me."

"Well, did she happen to whisper a safe word to dear old Bon-Bon in her last breaths? A clue, maybe? A witchy path out of here?" Damon asked.

"No," I said, "but if we got here by magic, magic should be able to get us out. In theory."

"And, that frown that's not upside down is telling me what?" Damon asked.

I glanced over at a pillar candle, nestled in large hurricane jar and said, "Phesmatos incendia?"

Nothing.

"So, in conclusion, Bonnie really scored here. She gets the switcheroonie _and_ fireball hands. And...you can't do any magic whatsoever," Damon sighed. He sat back in the swing, his shoulders sagging, "perfect."

I fought so hard to keep my own shoulders up, to stay tense, alert, scouring my brain for some scrap of an idea, but I was exhausted. I wasn't the Phoenix anymore. I'd been stripped of strength, and resilience, and every supernatural edge. I was...a human that had been walking every inch of her hometown for hours on end; and that's all I was.

"Let's go home," I suggested, "We should get some rest. Regroup tomorrow."

"You _are_ home, Barbarella," Damon said.

* * *

 **Day Two**

 _What a man, what a man, what a man, what a mighty good man!_

"Yes he _is_!" Damon squealed out to the tune.

I followed the half-decent smell to find Damon in the kitchen, chugging a bottle of bourbon, flipping pancakes, and bopping along to 90s jams.

"I didn't know you cooked," I said, with a massive grin on my face.

Damon jerked, clearly too enveloped in the song to have heard my arrival. He spun and smirked.

"I don't," Damon said, clearing his throat, "how'd you sleep? Me...not good. My 1994 mattress was very lumpy. Where've you been? Whatcha got there?"

I looked down at my belongings, gestured to the teddy bear first, and explained, "oh, I felt bad about Ms. Cuddles being left outside all alone, so I went by the house and picked her up-"

"Did you go in?" he asked.

"Shut up," I said, and gestured to the old musty tome under my arm, "more importantly, I also found _this_ at Bonnie's Gram's house."

"And this is?"

" _This_ is a super old get-us-outta-here grimoire."

Damon nodded and scrunched up his entire face. He gestured over to a much fancier looking bottle of bourbon on the counter and declared, "yeah well, in way better news, I found _this_. Drank it last year when Ric died. I cannot wait to crack into that bad boy, again."

"So...we're in this snapshot of another time or...something," I mused, ignoring his sidebar.

Damon in turn ignored me, spun the CD rack, and blindly picked out a new one.

"Everything that existed in 1994, still exists," I continued to ruminate.

Damon gasped, and muttered to the disc in his hand, "for better, or for worse."

He kissed the CD before switching it over, and blasting out some god awful rock. I stomped over and slammed it off. Damon stared back at me in horror.

"Listen!" I implored, "there was a time when Bonnie was struggling to perform basic parlor tricks. She read that grimoire back to front and it taught her a lot, so maybe...I can teach myself."

Damon scoffed, turned his music back on and moaned, "yes, _if_ you were an actual witch, which with our luck, and your skill-probably ain't the case."

"Would a little support kill you?" I groaned back at him.

"You know, I am acutely aware that we are in some otherworldly time dimension," Damon said, "however, do you ever think for one second that maybe it's _you_ being negative, reacting to my natural self, negatively?"

I glared back and shook my head, muttering, "you're ridiculous."

"Nope! I'm consistent!" Damon declared, with a wide grin. He plopped two pancakes onto a plate, put it down in front of me and ordered, "eat your pancakes."

The plate clinked on to the table and I immediately thought about the waitress twirling her hair and grinning at Enzo. I was pissed at Damon; that part wasn't new. But I had welcomed the new day, so full of hope and focus, and determination, and I'd been steam-rolled by, what...jealousy? The mere thought of his kind gesture, getting pancakes for an exhausted girl in desperate need of reviving, that was enough to summon Enzo from the Other Side. I wondered whether ugly emotions were enough to transcend wherever the hell we were; or maybe they were just a prickle in the backside. But no, I was the one on the wrong side this time; Enzo was home, he'd have to think of me. I shook the logistics from my mind, along with Enzo's backside.

"Oh, and..." Damon said, grabbing a newspaper from the counter and dropping it down in front of me, "-you can do a crossword puzzle."

"Oh, gee, thanks! Breakfast with my least favorite person _and_ a crossword puzzle, from 1994," I sang, sarcastically. I flipped the newspaper open and asked him, monotonously, "alright, what's a seven letter word for-"

Suddenly, the sky darkened, just like before. Our eyes shot over to the window immediately. Damon pressed his face up against the glass and watched the effects of the eclipse outside.

"You've got to be kidding me," he muttered.

My hand closed in on itself completely. I looked around for the pen, confused at the lack of a clatter as it dropped, and then noticed the newspaper was gone too, and the pancakes!

"Uh...Damon-"

Damon jerked and he looked down at his hands that had been clutching his beloved bottle. It was gone. It hadn't shattered on the counter top below him. He looked around the room, caught my confusion, and made a beeline for the cabinet beside the fireplace; he pulled it out.

"I just blinked," Damon muttered under his breath, and he wandered out to the front door.

He returned to the kitchen with the newspaper that I'd been perusing mere seconds ago and handed it over to me, requesting, "Rosie, look at the date on that paper."

I looked at the exact same headlines, and read, "May 10th, 1994. It's the same day as yesterday," I caught Damon's furrowed brow, all sense of joviality had dissipated. I looked around at where Ms. Cuddles had once sat, and noted, "the bear's gone too, and the grimoire. Everything reset with the eclipse. We're living the exact same day all over again."

"Well that proves it, we're in Hell," Damon declared, "our own personal, custom-built Hell. And you're in it with me. Bottoms up!"

Damon had a few gulps of the bourbon before handing it over to me to follow suit.


	70. Every Single Day

**On day four, we played a new drinking game.**

"Okay, the game is called: Shots of Silver Linings," I declared to my crumpled up audience. I sighed, and noted, "yeah, that sucks...working title! The rules of the game are simple, and as follows: we are taking the super depressing edge off of purgatory and we are sprinkling in a little silver lining or two! Say something about this place that is not completely sucky, and take a shot. If you agree, take a shot! If you don't agree, take one anyway, the booze resets!"

I stared back at Damon with unmatched enthusiasm.

"Drinking either way," he eventually grumbled into his glass, "fine by me."

"Great. I'll go first!" I suggested, and thought a little, "hmm, okay, number one: I get to relive my childhood."

"You haven't stepped foot inside your house, not once," Damon muttered back.

"We can drive around in old-timey cars."

"There is only one car I care about, and I can't remember where the crap I left it in 1994," Damon sneered.

"We can appreciate how far technology has come along in the past 18 years," I shot back, sternly.

"We are stuck with useless crap. No one to page. No one to fax-"

"You're not really getting the point of this game-" I groaned.

"There is no point!" Damon scowled back, and staggered up to his feet, "you can't polish this turd, Rosie Pie! So, stop trying."

 **On day seven, I officially won said drinking game, which doesn't paint our initial response to our situation too well.**

Damon sauntered outside, over the front lawn, and flopped down onto his back beside me. He rolled onto his side and whispered, "shouldn't you be at Hogwarts by now? Finding a witchy-way outta here? You gotta _earn_ nap-time, Blondie."

I was spending a lot of my time at Bonnie's Gram's house, looking through her old tomes and grimoires; but I had learned the hard way that there was no real merit in getting up to work at the crack of dawn, and thus informed Damon, "I'm waiting for the reset button, duh."

I continued to rest my eyes and enjoy the feeling of the sun beating down on my face. It was the little things now, after all.

"I'll come with," he eventually muttered, and started absentmindedly picking at the grass.

"And you'll grumble and complain, and completely throw off my concentration. OH. Number thirteen: we never have to clean up after ourselves, or do laundry!" I declared, pushing myself up on to my elbows with renewed energy, "I'm gonna count that as two things."

"You won," Damon muttered, and handed over his hip flask as the sky darkened for the seventh time.

 **On day ten, I came face to face with my mortality.**

"Damon! DAMON?!" I called out and thundered down the stairs.

"What? WHAT?!" Damon groaned back.

"I painted my nails yesterday!" I informed him, and presented my hands to him.

"Rosie. I am not your gal pal, but you clearly did a terrible job," he grumbled, barely even glancing at them.

"It's gone! They were purple; now they are bare. I'm highlighting the physics of this stupid world, can you listen to me? Seriously?" I scorned back, waited for something resembling his attention, and continued on, "that bottle of nail polish is part of this construct, so it resets. _We_ are not."

"What are you talking about?" Damon grumbled.

"Our clothes, the clothes we were wearing the night that we came here, they don't move or ping back to the cemetery every eclipse, and we don't either. We were brought in here, we are not a part of this world. _You_ are a super-old vampire, so that doesn't affect you. _You_ won't grow old and die, but I am now a witch! Right? We are not resetting, Damon. What if I grow old and die here?"

Damon looked thoughtful for a moment and then he sneered, "keep on badgering me and you will not have to worry about that."

 **On day fifteen, Damon drank a lot of bourbon, and broke the rest.**

"EITHER GET OUT OR GET MAD! BE ANGRY! SHOUT. SCREAM. BREAK THINGS!" Damon hollered, and lobbed another bottle, this time behind the bar, smashing the stacked shelves to smithereens; shards of glass burst out from the impact like a firework exploding in the sky.

"I'm kinda busy trying to find a freaking way out of here, Damon, I don't have time to babysit you! AGAIN!" I scorned back at him.

"Hell you talking about? Plenty of time, kid, all the time in the goddamn world! That's all we have!" Damon declared passionately, shouting out to the empty room.

"Can you be an asshole at home? Come on, let's go, I'm exhausted," I requested plainly.

"I'm not going anywhere, kid," Damon grumbled and swayed.

"Well, we are not wasting away in this freaking dive bar, Damon," I assured him, tersely. "I won't let you do that."

"I'm not going back to playing house, and playing games. Okay? So, just stop!" Damon slurred back, imploring, "stop for one goddamn second, JUST STOP! Stop with the peppy smiley silver linings bullshit and just admit that this _freaking sucks_! This sucks, Rosanna! And for me, heck, I suck, I've done some sucky things and I probably deserve to be here, but _you_?! You did everything right! You saved the world, you saved your friends, and you get sent straight to Hell, with me! How can you skip around memory lane and not want to take a baseball bat to those _old-timey cars_? I mean...like...what the hell is wrong with you?!"

My first thought was Ro...the Robot. I had to suppress the little chuckle in my throat as I thought about Jeremy yelling at me in the woods.

 _At least she's not acting like some psycho robot with no emotions...you swan about like nothing even happened! What the hell are you trying to prove with that?!_

 _Someone has to keep it together whilst you two crumple into tiny balls of sadness!_

 _No one asked you to play the martyr. Be a human being, just this once. Even our parents drowning at the bottom of the lake doesn't deter the Ro-bot from her course! It's like she doesn't even care._

 _I-I don't care?! You are not the only one going through Hell, Jeremy! Get over yourself for five fucking seconds! I am so scared that if I stop, for one second, I'm gonna shatter. Just because I don't break things...doesn't mean I don't want to! That doesn't mean that I'm not hurting!_

That was two years ago. And...I'm still hurting. I still care, more than ever. I have never been so scared. I surveyed the damage to the bar, I stared back at Damon, and then I rolled my eyes and headed for the door.; it wasn't worth it. Someone has to keep it together; I didn't have time to question why it always had to be me.

"Are you for real? That's it?" Damon scoffed back, and hollered, "ROSANNA! STOP!"

I stopped. I steadied myself, and I came back to him with a greater standard of composure than I'd taken to Jeremy.

"You really wanna know why I'm not crumpled up in a ball? Why I cling on to faith and hope in the face of stupidly insurmountable odds? Why I have been busting my ass for the past two weeks, whilst you've just been drinking Mystic Falls dry?" I scorned up at him, very closely, "if I don't believe that I will ever see Elena, or Jeremy, or Hayley, or any other person again, then that means I am stuck with _you_. That means I accept the fact that I will die here with _you_. I won't get to meet Hayley's daughter. Or Jeremy's. Or my own. I won't go to college. Or get married. Or go up the Eiffel Tower, or dance by the banks of the River Seine. I won't get to know if Elijah really was the love of my life," my eyes darkened as I uttered the words, "I will die in an empty box with Damon Salvatore."

Damon looked away for the first time, sheepishly.

"So...I'll stick to hope," I informed him, coldly, and left him there, alone.

 **On day seventeen, Damon came home, and we talked.**

He found me at Bonnie's Gram's house that night, nestled inside a fortress of books. It was late. I didn't so much as flinch at the sound of the front door opening before me; who else was that really gonna be?

"You didn't lock the door," Damon said as he took a tentative seat beside me, "you've gotta be careful around here. Lotta...jerks roam these streets."

"I accept your apology," I said and handed him over a tome.

Damon smirked and he told me, "I looked for you back at the house, and at the Gilbert House-"

"I'm not going inside the house because I don't need to," I interrupted him, "I know what my parent's empty bed looks like: it will either be the yellow peony design on the covers, or this awful patch-work number that my mom made for my dad one anniversary. They didn't spend money on things, or themselves, they spent it on us, and our hobbies and vacations, and memories. And I know what it's like to see their empty seats at the dining table, with the dishes they didn't get around to that morning because they were running late and they really needed to get me to my gymnastics competition. And Jeremy stayed behind and promised he'd do them, but he never did. I know what it's like to walk into my dad's study and see the book left open on his desk, and there's another beside his favourite spot on the couch, and another on the breakfast bar, because he always has to have one of the dozen books he has on the go within reaching distance, or he starts to get antsy."

Damon didn't say a word. For what felt like the first time, in the years that I'd known him, he was silent, and he just listened.

"I'm not going inside that house because I do not want to see Elena's empty bed," I told him, "or Jeremy's. Or my own."

 **On day twenty-seven, we watched Dirty Dancing, and we talked some more.**

I plonked the bowl of popcorn down into Damon's lap. He was still huffing and puffing about losing the rock paper scissors match, and thus losing the movie choice, but he was still here. I set up the VHS, and curled back into the couch.

"You _love_ Elijah?" Damon asked me, abruptly.

I glanced over at him, and nodded quickly, "yes. I do."

"Huh. That's...surprising," Damon said.

"Ssh. It's starting," I whispered back, and flapped a hand at him.

"He's a little old for you, isn't he?" Damon scoffed.

"You're a little old for my sister," I reminded him, curtly.

"Touche. A century. A millennium. Potato. Potatoh. So...that means you really forgive him for that whole mind-erasing thing?" Damon asked and offered me the popcorn, cordially.

"It came from the right place, I guess. It was just wholly misguided; I'm clearly the captain of my own demise, each and every time. He never had to worry about taking the blame, "I explained.

"He would though. He's mushy like that," Damon noted, and grabbed a fistful of popcorn, leaving a trail of kernels across the couch on the trip back to his mouth. I gave him a look and he shrugged at the mess, "what? It'll clear itself up tomorrow."

 **On day thirty-nine, we came up with our suicide pact.**

" _If_ I grow old and die-" I started.

"You won't," Damon cut me off.

" _If_ I do...will you...hang out here, still?" I asked him.

"Are you asking me to sign a suicide pact with you?"

"Well...yeah. If it was the other way around. I'd probably check out when you did. I don't think anyone should have to be alone like that. That's...awful."

"Tell you what, on your death bed, whether that be when you are wrinkly and gross, or still youthful but super jaded and depressed, and that peppy optimistic well of yours has officially dried up, we will crack open that bottle of vintage bourbon, and we will kiss our sorry butts goodbye, together," Damon suggested.

"Deal," I said, and we shook on it. We would drink that now forbidden bottle of bourbon; the bottle would replenish itself the very next day, and this world would go on like we were never ever here.

 **On day forty-four, my own resolve began to chip away.**

The eclipse had slipped out of the way to reveal a brand new brightly shining sun, just as it had every other morning before. Damon flipped his pancakes and I lorded over the newspaper; just as we had every other morning before.

"What's a seven letter word for kill me now?" I muttered.

"That joke got old six weeks ago," Damon shot back.

"And so did this crossword puzzle. Everyday for two months, I've done this stupid thing and I still can't figure out 27 across," I grumbled and read aloud, "old tongue twister Eddie turned top 40?" I tapped the pencil against the table, ever louder, ever more belligerent, before turning my attention squarely to the pancakes Damon had just served me. I stabbed angrily at the stupid face he'd drawn out in whipped cream, and grunted, "I hate pancakes!"

"Whoa, don't take it out on the pancakes!" Damon implored and failed to adequately read the room before quipping, "those pancakes, like myself, are just waiting patiently for you to be witchy to get us the hell out of here."

I rose abruptly, and shot back at him, "you know I've been trying!"

"-and failing," Damon said, "-which is further evidence we're in Hell. Not only am I stuck with _you_ , I'm stuck with the useless version of you."

I was appalled, offended, speechless, slack-jawed. I opened my mouth to say something but a sudden noise cut off my intent, and my shoulders bunched up sharply in response. I stepped back instinctively towards him and I asked, "did-did you hear that?"

"What would I have heard, kid?" Damon asked me, with clear frustration plastered across his face, "we're the only two people here, we were the only two people here two months ago and the only two people here now!"

"Well I swear I heard...something!"

"Maybe it's the sound of existential despair. I hear that's what Hell sounds like," Damon scoffed.

"You know what?" I barked back at him, and his stupid smarmy face, "you think we're trapped in _your_ Hell? _I_ have to spend everyday on repeat with the person I like least on this Earth-! Maybe we're trapped in _mine_!"

I left angrily, just as I had done so the morning before.

 **That night, we conceded that we were not alone.**

Damon found me behind the stove for the first time, occupying his usual spot. I mixed a modest pot of beans, and made up two bowls. Damon sat at the table silently, and I served dinner, sitting down quietly across from him. Damon unfolded his napkin, and I handed him a spoon. He smiled back at me as a thank you, and we ate for a while, in silence. Damon looked forlorn, and I could tell that he was thinking about his brother. A century and a half of brotherhood; my siblings and I were but a speck on their timeline; I couldn't imagine loving someone for that long, and having the promise of tomorrow, and forever, unceremoniously ripped out from underneath you.

"I miss them too," I said.

Damon looked up in surprise, and he nodded in agreement. I poked around at my beans.

I always thought about Jeremy; the look on his face; screaming my name. I remembered so clearly how it felt to lose my twin, half of my heart; that moment when I realised that Jeremy was really gone, forever, and I would never see him again: the sucker-punch to the gut. That feeling dimmed over time but it never went away, and the phantom pain reared its head once more, knowing that my brother was going through the same thing, right now.

I thought about Elena every day; losing both her little sister and the love of her life, in one fell swoop. I knew that some hurried final words rattled out to Bonnie was not going to be enough to keep her out of the darkness. Her heart was too big, and her love was too strong. I could lose days at a time so easily if I let myself, just drowning in all the possibilities of how this was destroying her.

I thought about Bonnie a lot. She would be the one watching the fallout, helplessly, denied any and all opportunity to help, probably by both of them. Jeremy would not forgive her; he was a stubborn ass like that; he didn't forgive easily. Elena, on the other hand, she may have to. And would Bonnie ever forgive herself? She was handed this second chance out of the hat, she never moved to withdraw it herself. I wondered whether Ignatius had paid her a berating visit yet.

Alaric was another who would never want his second chance granted at this price. Caroline couldn't fix this. She couldn't make any of it better. She'd be a big ball of unrelenting energy, with no outlet, no second-hand joy to thrive on.

Elijah...

I thought about a summer of unrest, confusion, and fear coming to an end with a single invitation to a party at a mansion. I thought about drawing comfort from an apartment we'd only spent a few moments together in. I thought about a man who had dedicated his entire life to his family wavering in his steadfast approach; withholding the cure from his sister, withholding his support from his brother; he came to me first. He will always protect me. I thought about hallucinations and dreams and walking through memories. I thought about how I felt seeing him each and every time we parted, whether for minutes, or days, or weeks, and the small smile that gave it away; he'd heard it, the skip and thunder of my heart. He always came back. I thought of our first kiss. Our second. Our third. Our last.

Damon grabbed the newspaper from the table and perused it; the rustle shoogled me out of my daydream. He said, "huh, look who got 27 across."

I smirked and told him, "I wish, 27 across is a rock I am pushing up an endless mountain."

"It's an old tongue twister Eddie turned top 40, Eddie Vedder, Pearl Jam. Yellow Ledbetter," Damon said, and put the newspaper down before me.

I didn't get the joke at first. I grabbed the newspaper, and looked at the puzzle. 27 across was filled in: _YELLOW LEDBETTER_. I looked up at Damon and asked him, "are you messing with me?"

Damon laughed uncertainly, and asked, "no, you messing with me?"

"I didn't finish this," I assured him.

"Well...neither did I," Damon replied.

I looked around the room, suddenly spooked, and said, "there's someone else here."


	71. Means To An End

**Day one hundred and forty-one**

We trundled down aisle after aisle of the deserted grocery store snipping at each other every now and then. I reached out for the cart handle, but Damon slid into my way and grabbed it first.

"I got it," he grumbled.

I threw my hands up and waved around a pretend white flag, then rummaged into my pocket to reacquaint ourselves with our shopping list.

"Okay. We need...strawberries," I told him.

"Mm-hmm," Damon hummed.

"Eggs, milk and-ooh candles!" I said with a smile.

I plucked one up and sniffed the pale-green minty-fresh number before popping it down into the cart. I looked over at Damon and decided to ignore his flat glare.

"I get that you're stuck on 'never-give-up/silver linings/persevere' mode, but riddle me this: you and Bonnie did the old switch-aroo, she got flame-thrower hands, and you got to teleport off to 1994 as _the Anchor_...Bonnie couldn't do magic as the Anchor. So, I'm just curious, what momentary lapse of reason makes you think that you can suddenly do magic?" he asked.

I smirked and told him, "you know, when all this started, you sucked at making pancakes but now they're somewhat edible." I shrugged nonchalantly, unfazed by his sharp glare, and pointed at the milk. Damon stopped the cart abruptly with overly-dramatic flair and grabbed a big carton of milk out of the fridge. I sauntered over to the sunglasses stand, and told him, "There's no reason to be Peter Pessimist. We have proof that we're not alone."

I turned to show off my beautiful over-sized blue aviators, but Damon was not impressed.

"First of all: don't nickname, that's my thing," he insisted, and propped on his own pair of ridiculous sunglasses before continuing his rant, "and this proof? This mysteriously filled-in crossword could very easily have been you."

I leant against the cart and over enunciated the fact, "I didn't fill it in."

"No," Damon huffed back, "you don't _know_ you filled it in. You _also_ don't know that you talk in your sleep. Eggs!"

My shoulders bunched at his sharp tangent. I sighed heavily and grabbed the eggs out of the fridge before confronting his absurd accusation, "what are you saying? Are you saying I _sleep-crossword_?

Damon took off his glasses to wave them around and emphasize his point, "I'm saying it makes more sense than the alternative."

He snatched the eggs from my hand and slammed them down into the cart. I think by this point I'd developed immunity to Damon's sour mood; it was so transparent.

I laughed, and said, "I get what you're doing."

"What am I doing?" he groaned as he trundled away.

"You refuse to have hope that you'll see Elena again so you don't have to be disappointed," I explained simply as I bumbled behind him.

"I refuse to have hope because there's nothing to hope for!" Damon assured me.

I stopped tailing him suddenly and muttered, "pork rinds."

Damon consulted the shopping list, and said, "not on the list and _ew_."

"No, Day-mon," I over-enunciated, frustratingly, and explained to him, "there were pork rinds on this shelf. There have been pork rinds here on every shopping trip we've had for the past 4 months."

Damon just squinted back at me in response; he was either not following or not caring...probably both. Suddenly, an oddly familiar sound played out through the cutting silence; it startled us; a classic twinkling fair-ground melody, just like a carousel...like the old dusty run-down carousel that sat outside this store for years and years.

"You hear that?" I gasped and hurried to the front of the store. Damon followed me outside to the small horse carousel spinning and singing away. It was evidently well-loved and cared for in 1994; I couldn't remember it clearly looking like this but the memory of that jingle had been tucked away somewhere in my mind. I turned to Damon and asked him, "hmm, you hear that, Damon? That's what hope sounds like."

Damon, ever the kill-joy, ever the pessimist, opened up the switch box of the carousel, and started rummaging around inside. He frowned and muttered, "it's gotta be a short, faulty wiring, something."

" _Or_ someone put a quarter in it and turned it on?" I posed.

"You know what, Blondie, I'm a little confused with all this misplaced hope," Damon said, "all right, let's just say there's someone here, whatever, that's all well and good, but how are you so convinced we're gonna get out?"

"Well, you say that this is your Hell, right?" I explained, "if there's someone else here, that means it's not _your_ Hell, and if it's not your Hell, that means that Bonnie's Grams put us here, and if she put us here, there's a way out."

"That's a hell of a logic knot you've tied for yourself," Damon scoffed and slammed the switch box shut.

" _Thank you_. So, now that we have properly placed our hope, let's play a game: when we get out, what's the first thing you're gonna tell Elena?" I asked him.

Damon thought for a moment, and then he said, "Sorry I killed your sister, but she was the most annoying person in the world," he smirked and then sauntered away to the parking lot continuing his rant, "she wouldn't shut up. She just kept talking and talking. I mean, it's a wonder I made it as long as I did, but here's the thing: I think it's better this way because she didn't have magic, and she was pretty much useless-"

"Damon," I said, with a huge smile, hardly believing my luck.

"What?" Damon groaned out.

I shrugged and said, "I don't know, you still think i'm useless?"

He followed my point and saw his beloved car. He checked the number plate quickly and then bellowed out, "that's my car. That's my car!"

Damon hopped in and reacquainted himself with his dearly beloved motor. He played with anything and everything. He ran the engine and listened to the...sweet melody? I actually had no idea what the hell he was doing. If that all wasn't enough, he then started playing make-believe and was transported to a race track in his mind.

"Vrrrmm, vrrrmm!" Damon churned out and jerked his steering wheel about in time.

"How much longer are we gonna listen-" I started.

"Shh, shh, shh, shh!" Damon insisted, "this sound is the opposite sound of your voice, and I do so enjoy it."

"How did it even get here, Damon? Did you leave it here in 1994?" I asked him, snottily.

"I don't know, Ro-Ro. It was 18 years ago...had a lot going on that day," Damon replied, vaguely.

" _Okay_ , so you admit that it's pretty unlikely that you did," I posed.

"Very unlikely," Damon said, begrudgingly.

"Which would stand to reason... _that_..."

"Someone _may_ have put it here, Rosie-Pie. Yes, I admit that," he grumbled.

Victory was mine! Damon got lost in his own thoughts for a minute before divulging, "I'm gonna tell Elena how much I love her," I smiled back at him, and enjoyed the little sprig of sincerity for a whole millisecond before he ruined it once more by adding, "and then I'm gonna apologize for killing you."

My eyes widened and I whispered, "wait. Did you just see that?"

Damon had turned his head sharply, and this time we both clearly noticed a flash of a figure behind a parked car.

"I did that time," he replied, "let's go meet our little friend."

Damon clambered out of his car swiftly and led the charge through the parking lot. I scarpered after him, and searched around desperately. Knowing what I know now, yes, I should have been utterly terrified, and much less keen to find the stranger. But, apparently Stranger Danger goes right out the window when you've been isolated for four months.

"It was behind the pickup," I insisted.

"No. It was in the front," Damon whined.

"Are you sure?" I asked him.

"Yes. Absolutely I'm sure. It was right there-" Damon grumbled but was cut off by a loose layer of tarp flapping around in the wind, batting against the pickup cabin. He sighed heavily and muttered, "it was a tarp. We saw a tarp."

Suddenly, the carousel turned back on and the music started playing again, defeating my counter-argument before it even left my lips. Damon scorned, "and that...that is on a timer. That turned on by itself."

"But your car?" I reminded him.

"I left it here in '94," Damon shot back.

"And the crossword?"

"You filled it out, kid!" Damon groaned and slammed the back of the truck, "which means we're alone in my own Hell with no Gram's escape hatch. We're never getting out."

I glared back at him; I felt every one of his knock backs like a physical shove to the chest. I bit the inside of my cheek, but it wasn't enough this time.

"Give me your ring," I demanded.

"What?" Damon groaned.

I grabbed his hand and demanded again, "give me your ring!" I tried to snatch at it while he batted me away like a fly, and I cried out, "all I've heard you say is that you have no hope and that this is your Hell, so if it's so bad, why don't you just end it?!"

Damon pushed me back and he looked more sheepish than he ever had before.

He stepped back towards me, maybe to apologize or maybe to say something sarcastic and disarming but I shoved him once more in the chest, and I implored, "hope is the only thing keeping me going, Damon, so if you're really done...if you have none then _be done_ , because this isn't helping!"

* * *

I was gone for all of five minutes; a walk around the block was usually enough to cool off and forgive his stupid mug. I half-expected to see him perched on the hood of his car, the trunk packed up with the groceries, ready to ride on home, but he wasn't there. A little prickle of anger re-emerged but his car was still parked up so he had to be inside.

There were two voices inside Bell's Store. Instinct or intuition or something equally obscure sent a cold shiver down my spine, and I kept out of sight as I listened in.

"Who buys patio furniture from a grocery store?" the stranger chuckled, "I mean, somebody must, otherwise it...it wouldn't be here," he picked up an umbrella and snapped the wooden end in two before ruminating, "now, I'm a little unfamiliar with vampires, but from what I've gathered, a stake in the heart should do it, right?"

Damon was rolling around on the floor in pain, he reached his hand out to claw at the stranger's leg; the stake slammed down and skewered his hand in response.

"Aah!" Damon growled out, in agony. I winced at crumpled at the sound. My eyes darted around desperately searching for something to help me; poor, defenseless, powerless, useless me!

"You always fight dirty, Damon," the stranger chuckled, "like that time you and Rosie played monopoly and you stole from the bank. Not cool."

I felt pure terror. Damon managed to wrestle his hand free, stagger to his feet and seethe, "I'm gonna rip your head off."

 _Yes!_ I cheered in my mind.

"No. You're not," the stranger said, simply. He took a massive swing at the shelves of liquor with his broken stick, sending shards of glass and tainted liquid scattering through the air. Damon's skin burned and blistered and he slammed down to the floor again in agony. The stranger chuckled over him, "I didn't know which bottle you'd take, so I vervained them all!"

 _Shit. Shit. SHIT._ If keeping out of sight was down to intuition then I have no idea what compelled me out of my hiding spot, it was a mixture of anger, terror and...mainly stupidity. The stranger raised the umbrella stick above Damon, primed to bring it down and end his life.

"Stay away from him," I seethed, fists clenched, teeth gritted.

"Ah, the useless one is here! Thank God!" the stranger goaded me, "you know, I've watched you try and fail miserably to do magic for months now so...what exactly are you gonna do now, fail _at_ me? It's embarrassing. I'm embarrassed for you."

I looked down at Damon, and then back up at the stranger. He raised his stake again, and the candles on the shelf cackled and ignited in response. He froze. I looked back at Damon, who looked mighty relieved and dare I say a little impressed.

"Uh-oh," the stranger muttered.

"Run," I instructed Damon, and he immediately flashed out of the store.

"Phesmatos Incendia," I chanted coolly, and the pools of bourbon at Kai's feet roared up into flames and encircled him. It felt...different; the flames weren't listening to me, and working with me like before; they didn't feel like an extension of me...they felt like anger, like a controlled manifestation of my anger, and it felt...good. The Phoenix served a higher purpose. This served...me.

"Okay. Okay. Okay!" he huffed out quickly, and tossed the stake down.

"Giving up so soon? I'm embarrassed for you," I smirked back at him.

Damon suddenly flashed back and knocked the stranger out cold from behind. He caught his breath, and apologised, "I'm sorry I called you the most annoying person in the world...I hadn't met him yet."

* * *

We brought Kai, the stranger, back home for a good old fashioned interrogation and tied him to a chair in the den. We had to wait around for a while before he regained consciousness; Damon had whacked him pretty good. Damon passed the time by munching on pork rinds and I passed it by thinking out loud.

"It's like...before, I just _knew_ what I was doing was the right thing, and I almost never had to think about using my power. It was like moving, and breathing...I didn't need to think," I attempted to explain, "but when I set all of that bourbon on fire...my head was so loud."

"You're not seriously having a mushy moment of sympathy for the douche that tried to stake me?" Damon rebutted.

"No," I said, and shook my head, "it had nothing to do with him. I don't know. It was just...different."

"The old you was this mythical barometer for good and evil, and a champion of sunshine and pixie dust, right? So, maybe that's just another part you lost, kid...you're not an angel anymore, you're back to Plain Jane Human," Damon posed and chuckled, "and that means Bonnie definitely exploded from sheer righteousness a long time ago."

He was sort of helping, in his own way, but he wasn't really getting what I meant. I wasn't explaining it well, I hadn't really sorted out in my own mind yet. Kai began to stir.

"You're awake. Good. Now for the Q&A portion of the evening," Damon declared, and waved around a hot poker in his face.

"Let me guess," Kai groaned, "I answer right, I get a pork rind. Wrong, I get a poker."

"What? No, no, no. These are for me. You just get the poker," Damon scoffed.

"Yeah. You don't have to do that," Kai declared and grinned back at him.

"No?" Damon scoffed.

"We're on the same team," Kai assured us, so convincingly.

"Really?" I asked him, tersely, "do you always try and kill your teammates?"

Kai smiled very widely at me, and said, "the important thing is that you have your magic back. It worked."

Damon and I exchanged a confused look with each other.

"What, you...you didn't really think I'd kill Damon, did you?" Kai chuckled, incredulously, "in what universe does that make sense? I wouldn't kill 1/3 of our population. I'm not a monster. I knew Rosie would show up. She always comes back, all 13 times. And I knew with the right motivation she'd be able to access her magic. Although, I did get a little worried with all your bickering that Damon's life wouldn't be enough motivation, but turns out it was. I guess that's just how you two show your love."

"So, you did all that just to make sure I would have my magic?" I asked him.

"Of course I did," Kai explained, simply, "because your magic is the key to getting the hell out of here."


	72. Sorry Doesn't Work For Me

**Day one hundred and forty-two**

Kai and Damon were bickering back and forth in the den. Kai was still secured to his chair; Damon flopped down onto the couch, pinched the bridge of his nose and counted to ten.

"I found everything you asked for: can-opener, shower drain, grinding wheel, jam, pocket knife, volume "O" of the encyclopedia, a nail and a black marker," I informed Kai, and dumped everything in my rucksack out onto the coffee table. He just grinned that stupid childish grin back at me, so I urged, "now what?"

"Can't show you with my hands taped," Kai sang, and did a little jazz-hands dance.

I glared back at his unblinking gaze and then relented, begrudgingly picking up the newly-acquired pocket knife.

"Rosie..." Damon grumbled as I cut the tape binding Kai's wrists.

"Thank you," Kai said to me, warmly, but I avoided his gaze.

"Okay. Fine. How is this pile of crap going to get us out of here?" Damon asked.

Kai rubbed his freed wrists and replied, "I'll explain...as soon as you tell me what you did on May 10, 1994."

 _Eh?_ I thought, and my face surely said. In May 1994, I was...still adjusting to existing having only been born the month before? Eat, poop, cry, sleep, repeat?

"What difference does it make!?" Damon whined out, heatedly. This was their quarrel.

"Let me put it this way: Rosie's magic is one part of the equation; my as-yet undisclosed knowledge is the other. Which means you would be hitching a ride home for free. I just want to know if you deserve to come along," Kai explained.

Damon stomped over to Kai, snatched the pocket knife from my hand, yanked Kai up to his feet, and shoved the knife against his neck; all in a blink.

"Or I could just torture you until you say something useful," Damon said.

"If you torture me, I'll get mad, and then I won't want to help you," Kai explained to Damon in a patronizing tone. He glanced over at me and whispered, "what kind of person needs to have that explained to them?"

I didn't like the way that Kai looked at me, or roundly assumed that prattling out a few witty words would make me jump over to his side. We were not friends. We were barely acquaintances. Nevertheless, I reached over and plucked the knife out of Damon's hand. Damon roughly let Kai go. Kai chuckled and sauntered away from Damon's ire.

"Play nice," I implored of Damon, quietly.

"Stop trying to impress the new guy," Damon shot back.

"Why don't you just tell him your story?" I suggested.

"Maybe because I don't want to talk about the worst thing I ever did, Rosie," Damon shot back.

Kai scooped out some jam with his hand and shoved it into face, chuckling, "oooh, now I'm listening."

* * *

Kai insisted that he be entertained while he worked, and by work he meant tinkering away with the bundle of junk on the coffee table. He wanted to hear Damon's Hell story, which I wouldn't class as an entertaining tale, based on the title alone. I didn't particularly want to hear it myself, after all, Damon and I were in a good place, and we had been for some time. I was well accustomed to what being Damon's friend meant at this point, and he hadn't done anything stupid or diabolical to make me question why I gave him the time of day or wasted my breath on him in a good long while. Even so, I suggested that he appease the annoyance before us, and just tell him the damn story.

Damon set the scene: in May 1994, he'd returned home after a 50 year hiatus to walk the straight and narrow. He came back to the Salvatore Boarding House which now run by Zach Salvatore and his pregnant partner, Gail, with Stefan exchanging his protection and labor for room and board.

Mid-way through the story, Kai's head tilted back and he started snoring.

"Perfect. Our savior's insane _and_ narcoleptic," Damon scoffed.

I wandered over to the drink's trolley to pour us both a drink, and mainly as something to do to pass the time.

"No, no, no, I'm awake," Kai insisted, "let me guess...you killed the pregnant woman."

"Shut up, Kai. You weren't listening," Damon snapped back.

"I was listening, in my sleep," Kai laughed, "you were hanging out with your distant-nephew Zach, who you called Uncle Zach, because that's not confusing, plus pregnant lady Gail, who had a big bull's-eye on her chest. Got it."

I stood before Damon, withheld his freshly-poured glass of bourbon for another beat, and requested, a little shakier than intended, "tell me you didn't kill a pregnant woman."

"Oh, that's _totally_ what happened. Why else would today be his personal hell?" Kai chuckled in response.

Damon took his glass from my hand swiftly and downed the entire thing in one. His expression shifted just as fast; no longer the picture of restrained annoyance. He set the empty glass down harshly and crouched down in front of Kai. Kai sung out, so tickled by the bite, "oh, here we go."

"The only reason that you're alive right now is because I thought you could get us out of here and you could help us. But you don't HAVE any answers! You're just a man-child-" Damon scorned and tossed the empty jam can angrily, "-with jam on your fingers!"

"Okay. To get home, we'll harness the power of the eclipse using a mystical relic. It's called an Ascendant, and it looks like this, Damon," Kai explained, and picked up the arts and crafts model he'd been working on: a round thing that looked like a jabby wheel of sorts. He added, "the last time we had it was in the Pacific Northwest—Oregon."

He opened up the encyclopedia, flicking through to a map and set it down on the jam-splattered coffee table.

"We?" I asked him.

"It belonged to my family," Kai explained quickly. He appeared to be either impressed or a little perturbed that I'd picked up on his slip, I couldn't really tell. He cleared his throat, picked up the pocket knife and slit the tip of his finger, "so-here's a little blood to get you started. Now, all we need is a locator spell to pinpoint its whereabouts."

They both rose to their feet. Damon looked back at me, and asked, "think you can find our ticket out of here, Ro-Ro?"

"Hell. Yeah," I declared.

* * *

I started the incredibly vital and useful task of conducting the locator spell for the Ascendant with Kai hovering over my shoulder; Damon made paper airplanes out of the newspaper and threw them around in the front yard. Kai had taught me the words for the spell; I'd heard Bonnie perform it countless times, so it was vaguely familiar, but I'd never committed the exact words to memory: _Phasmatos Tribum, Nas Ex Veras, Sequitas Sanguinem_

I chanted over and over and stared intently at the drop of blood on the map, which still hadn't moved an inch. It wasn't budging. My mind raced away from me: I'm not connecting with the words. I'm not doing it right. I'm not concentrating. I'm used to something natural and lacking in conscious thought: you are a threat, and now oh look at that, you are on fire!

I shook my head, sighed and said, "it doesn't feel right. Maybe I need a bigger map?"

Damon sauntered back inside the house and dropped the remainder of the newspaper on the table. He scoffed, "-or maybe you just suck at magic? There's always that."

"Ignore him, Rosie," Kai insisted, "pretend he's a white-noise machine. That's how I used to tune out my siblings. I grew up with a ton of little sisters and brothers," Kai started to come even closer towards me and he said in a low voice, "you know, all of them constantly yammering, but uh...it taught me how to focus."

He looked right into my eyes, and held my gaze, standing so very close to me.

"Easy there, big brother!" Damon grumbled, "her boyfriend's party trick is ripping hearts out."

I ducked out of Kai's close proximity and searched around the house, eventually finding a road map of the entire United States and I attempted the spell once again: _Phasmatos Tribum, Nas Ex Veras, Sequitas Sanguinem. Phasmatos Tribum, Nas Ex Veras, Sequitas Sanguinem._ Those words were going to haunt me in my dreams.

Kai's blood was disturbed and then traveled across the country in a straight line.

"The spell's moving towards Virginia. That can't be right," Kai said.

"Mm-hmm, the spell's working. It's showing me Mystic Falls...it feels so...close" I whispered, my eyes still shut, and turned a little to my left. I could hear the flickering candle flames crackling and intensifying around us, as though they were egging me on. I raised a hand to touch Kai's chest, and whispered, "it's right here."

The second I touched him, and opened my eyes, the candles snuffed out instantly and their delicate smokey trails dissipated slowly after. Kai's eyes were locked on to mine; magic had drawn me into his personal space this time. He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out the real Ascendant, a much more impressive silver and gold construction than his crude re-imagining. He whispered, "very good."

"That's the Ascendant?" I asked.

"The one and only," Kai determined.

"Thanks for the mind games, jackass," Damon grumbled.

"It was just another little test. To make sure Rosie's magic was precise enough for the spell," Kai explained to his disgruntled audience, "I do believe you're ready. Pack your bags - we're going home."

* * *

Outside in the yard, Kai was using the Ascendant, looking at the sky through a small hole in the device.

"You're wandering around like a crazy man, why?" Damon asked him.

I hung back a little behind Damon, using him somewhat as a barrier between us; it wasn't much, but it made me feel a tiny sense of security. I couldn't shake the uncomfortable feeling that something really wasn't right here; but I was torn between a desperate yearning to go home, and the million question marks still surrounding this stranger, the largest of all being...how'd you get here? Why are you here? I thought of my brother, then my sister...and I was silenced.

"Looking for the exact right spot. We need to find where the power of the eclipse is focused," Kai explained.

"You know you could have just shown us the Ascendant to begin with," I said.

"Yeah, but I wanted to feel your hand on my chest," Kai chuckled and grinned back at me.

"There's something not right about him," I muttered quietly to Damon.

"You're just not used to guys hitting on you," Damon quipped back.

"You know, I can't wait to get out of here and talk to somebody else," I smirked.

"Can we just have a few lasting seconds of peace while this idiot uses that thing to get the stars to align?" Damon requested.

As Damon grumbled away and continued to teased me, I caught sight of one of the paper airplanes he had chucked around earlier. Something made me pick it up and unfold the page better so that I could read the article.

"Hey. What's up with the nature walk?" Damon asked Kai, following his bumble around the yard and eventually up the drive.

"I used the Ascendant to figure out where we need to be standing during the eclipse," Kai explained.

"Great. Let's do some magic and get the hell out of here," Damon suggested.

"Oregon," I whispered as my blood ran cold.

"What?" Damon asked.

"I've read this paper like...a thousand times, and there's something in it about Oregon," I whispered to him.

"What about it?" Damon asked.

"You know Kai said he had all those brothers and sisters?" I said and pointed to the article, "family massacred in Portland. The only one missing was the oldest boy: a 22-year-old named Malachai."

Damon's eyes widened as he twigged and joined me on my cold-shivering level.

"Who names a kid Malachai?" Kai chuckled ahead of us, "it's like they expected me to be evil."

"All these kids were murdered!" I shot back.

"Hello! Not everyone died. I had a soft spot for one of my sisters, cause otherwise I would've cut her lungs out, and not just her spleen," Kai said nonchalantly.

"What?" I huffed out.

"You can survive without a spleen," Kai assured us.

"Something tells me you're not speaking hypothetically," Damon said.

Kai wandered around beside me, and I took a step back into Damon. Kai pointed at the photograph of his family members in the article, listing them off, "look, well, these two, I, uh, hung off the stairwell railing. Then, I put a hunting knife in her abdomen. And him, I drowned in the pool, but he kept fighting me, and I was like 'I saved you for last, you ungrateful little-' ...anyway, that was that."

"You just killed your whole family?" I huffed out.

"Coven, to be precise. Oh, you know, a family of witches," he replied.

"You're making her jump through hoops, and you're a witch?" Damon asked him.

"Sort of, yeah. No powers, obviously. Oh, and of course, the Gemini Coven did not take it too well when they heard what I did in Portland. It's why they banished me here," Kai said.

"This place _is_ a prison," I determined, "they created it for _you_."

"Yup. This place isn't your Hell, Damon." Kai explained as the sky darkened above us, "It's mine."

The newspaper slipped out of my hands. I staggered and brushed past Damon.

"We're not letting Kai out of here, okay?" I scorned back at Damon, leading the charge back inside the house, "he just said he's a serial killer!"

"I don't care! I wanna get out of here!" Damon whined behind me.

"How can you not care?!" I shot back, "maybe because of the horrible things you have done? Maybe cause killing a bunch of kids is not a big deal to someone who's murdered a pregnant woman?!" Damon looked a little hurt to hear those words flying out of my mouth. I asked him, curtly, "am I wrong?"

"You're not wrong. I promised Stefan an eternity of misery. I delivered," Damon replied, darkly.

"Ouch. Poor nephew-uncle Zach," Kai gasped behind us.

"Stefan compelled Uncle Zach to forget about the girlfriend and the baby. But, he couldn't cover up all those murders. Founder's Council was restarted, and Stefan took off. He left Mystic Falls for about fifteen years. We both did. And when I saw Uncle Zach again, I couldn't look at him without remembering that I ruined everything. So, it was a nice relief when I got to kill him," Damon explained, tersely, and requested, "okay, can we go back now?"

"Oh, come on, Rosie. You wanna go home to your friends and your dreamy heart-ripping boyfriend, and I wanna go back and give the rest of the Gemini Coven an excruciating death. Win-win," Kai sang.

"Look, Ro, I know this guy's not a model citizen, okay, I know that, but I gotta get back," Damon insisted, "not just for Elena, but for my brother-and yours."

I wanted to hit back at him, implore him not to use that card, but I couldn't look him in the eyes. I stared at the floor as I whispered, "I'm sorry, Damon."

"Sorry doesn't work for me," Kai determined and was about to grab me but instead Damon flashed past and slammed him back into the wall, harshly.

"Hey. We may be having a bit of a disagreement...but don't ever lay a hand on her," Damon scorned in Kai's face.

"Kind of a non-issue now. We missed the day's eclipse. Rain check for tomorrow?" Kai asked.

"No." I said, harshly, and walked away.

* * *

Right. Wrong. Grey. I wanted to cry; and then I didn't want to be alone with my thoughts any more. It was late on the one hundred and forty-second evening that we had been trapped here; we didn't need to see the one hundred and forty-third. I took a long deep breath and poked around at the plate of pancakes before me, kidding myself; I wasn't hungry.

"Shame-eating?" Damon quipped as he sauntered into the kitchen.

I looked down at the pancakes I'd rustled up for myself, the pancakes that Damon had taught me how to perfect, and I told him, "thinking about that pregnant lady. She had a thing for pancakes."

" _That's_ what you remember from that story?" Damon asked, incredulously.

"You remember it, don't you?" I asked him, "you make pancakes every day."

"-because I'm bored." Damon rasped, with a tired shrug.

"No. Because you're punishing yourself," I countered, "you call this place your Hell, and that means you feel remorse. That's what makes you different from Kai. Means there's hope for you."

"Look, we can still get outta here, Ro. We can steal that descendant contraption, find out what Kai knows, and we'll ditch him," Damon suggested, seriously, "he doesn't have any powers anyway."

"Actually, it's not that simple," Kai said, appearing suddenly in the doorway, causing us both to jump out of our skins, again.

"You gotta stop doing that. It's creepy," Damon groaned.

"Here's the thing: I have a killer effect on magic. I can't generate it myself. But, I can consume it from others, temporarily," Kai explained, "my family called me an abomination. That hurt my feelings-"

Kai suddenly grabbed my wrist, and I swear it felt like he was sucking the life right out of me, not just the magic. Damon attempted to intervene but Kai attacked him mentally. We both moaned out and screamed in pain. The stove caught fire. He set the cabinets ablaze with a single flick of his wrist.

"Okay, we get it!" Damon roared out, his hands clenched on to his splitting head.

Kai stopped his spells with the simple close of his hand; I yanked my wrist back and stumbled away in a jumble of fright and exhaustion.

"You can see why my coven and I didn't get along," Kai chuckled.

"I smell an ultimatum," Damon grumbled.

"If I consume all of Rosanna's magic, I am just gonna end up killing her, "Kai explained succinctly, as he circled me like a freaking shark, " _but_ if we work together, we can all go home as friends. _Or_ I can devour her magic, kill you both, and go home alone." Kai sat down in my seat and tucked into my pancakes. He glanced between us, and then settled on Damon to ask, "what's it gonna be?"


	73. It Was Okay, I Saw

**Day one hundred and forty-three - Mystic Falls Woods**

Damon and I were strolling through the woods; I was lost in thought; Damon was clearly not, he just whistled a particularly grating tune and twirled around a big stick.

"You're in a good mood for the first time this decade," I noted. Damon responded by poking me with said stick. I batted him away, and grumbled, "stop that."

" _Well_ I have a hot date with my girl tonight," Damon declared, "of course I'm in a good mood."

"Yeah, assuming Kai's telling the truth," I scoffed back.

"I'm thinking dinner and a movie," Damon posed, "you know what? Screw the dinner and a movie. Skip straight to the good part."

"Eww," I muttered back and jumped a bit as he poked me again with that freaking stick. I turned sharply, and glared at him and then grumbled, "-this is all assuming that I can actually do the spell, which I won't know...until I see it."

"Whatever happened to hope, Rosie Glow?" Damon questioned, sauntering up to walk side by side, "remember when I was all like BOO! GRR! And you were like _hooray, hooray, we're getting out of here_!? Let's go back to that, huh?"

I stifled the smirk at his high-pitched rendition of my voice, and I told him, seriously, "look, I want to go home more than anything, but Kai's a sociopath, who's to say he won't screw us over?"

" _Me_ , I say, because I will kill Kai and anyone who comes in the way of me going home!" Damon declared and play-fought a duel with the air before him. I quietly wondered where the heck _this_ Damon had been for the past four and a half months; it would've made our time together so much easier.

Kai suddenly appeared out of nowhere, as per, and noted, "I heard my name. All good, I hope!" He was met with resounding silence and a filthy look...or two. He held the Ascendant above his head, and he declared, "the eclipse will happen directly overhead, in perfect alignment with the Gemini constellation," he turned his attention to Damon and instructed, "you need to dig into the tunnels below us. We'll do the spell there."

"Why?" I asked him, tersely.

Kai paused for a second, looked baffled, and then spoke to me slowly, as though I were a small child, "have you never portal-jumped through an eclipse before? Okay...look, the light of the eclipse will shine down and activate the Ascendant, you spout a little witchy woo and then poof! Anyone standing in the circle of light holding the Ascendant goes home."

"By _witchy woo_ , I assume you mean the spell?" I asked him.

"Uh-huh," Kai nodded with a little 'no duh' expression that I had never seen on anyone over the age of seven.

"Let me see it," I demanded more than requested.

"When the time comes," he replied, swiftly, with that oh so smug smile of his, and then brushed past the both of us.

"Where are you going?" Damon asked, disinterestedly.

"Into town, I need to...gather some important supplies," he declared.

* * *

I peered down into the hole that Damon had made relatively quick work of, and I told him, "you know there's a very probable chance you're digging your own grave, and...meh, not bothered."

He shot me an unimpressed look, ignored me, and continued hacking away at the ground. Finally, an opening appeared below him.

"Ha!" Damon huffed out, checking back to catch my look of delight too.

"Looks like I got back just in time!" Kai beamed, and bunched up my shoulders.

That was getting so old. He went to set his backpack down; Damon flashed out of the hole and snatched it from his hands. He tore it open and raided the contents.

"Zima, grunge, every Alex Rodriguez rookie card known to man...and a pager," Damon scoffed and dumped the bag on the ground, "really?"

"555-Hi-Kai!" Kai beamed back at us, "no way I'm giving those digits up."

"These are the important supplies you needed to get?" Damon scorned.

"Look. The future sounds great, all right?" Kai hit back, feigning something of an emotional response, "I'm super excited about the Internet, but 1994 has been my home for most of my life. I'd hate to get homesick. So, let's get down there-"

"No," I interrupted him, and rose up from the dirt pile I'd perched on, dusting myself off. I approached the pair, pushing Damon and his attempt to stop me, out of the way, firmly and I told Kai, "we are not going anywhere until you show me the spell."

"Okay," Kai shot back and stood completely still, calling my bluff.

"Are we _literally_ not going anywhere?" Damon grumbled at the both of us, locked in our duel.

"Fine, you don't want to show me the spell? Then you can do it yourself," I informed Kai.

Kai just smiled back at me, looking delighted at my pitch.

"You...want my magic," I told him and extended my arm out to him, "take it."

"Uh-oh, she's being brave," Kai chuckled at Damon.

"I'm serious Kai! This was your big threat, wasn't it?" I goaded him, "if I don't do the spell and let us out of here, you'll just take my magic, leave me for dead, and do the spell yourself? So...go ahead. Take all of it."

"Hmph. Don't mind if I do," Kai scoffed and slapped both of his hands onto my shoulders.

It felt like all of my insides were being torn out of me. I crumpled inward, and struggled to stand upright.

"Rosie?" Damon scorned.

"It's okay," I huffed out, "he won't kill me."

"Does not look like that from here," Damon seethed.

I screamed out again in pain.

"Hey! KID! ROSIE!" Damon was barking but his voice was all warbled and warped, "WHOA! Hey, guys! STOP!"

Kai released me with a mischievous smile. I struggled to regain my composure and suddenly realized something. It wasn't grey. I didn't need to feel bad. I would never fear this pain ever again. Something inside me snapped.

"He doesn't know the spell," I thought out loud, "which means...we don't need him."

Kai scoffed at my revelation and rolled his eyes; he looked to Damon to share in the joke; he never saw me as a threat. I raised my hand, and uttered the word, "motus."

The ax that Damon was using to dig the hole soared through the air at great speed and buried itself square inside Kai's chest; his eyes widened in shock, he keeled over on his back. Dust scattered and settled. His eyes closed. His head flopped to the side. He was dead.

"NO! No!" Damon roared over the scene, "ROSIE!"

He sounded more annoyed than anything. He scoffed, clapped me on the back and sarcastically drawled, "great work, kid."

* * *

"Mmm. Mmm, mmm, MMM!" Damon moaned as he chugged his way through Kai's bottle of Zima.

"Can you...stop? Let me concentrate?" I asked him, without glancing up from the grimoire in my hands.

"On the bright side, this stuff's not so bad. It's fruity _and_ fizzy-" Damon declared.

"Damon, I'm working on something-" I muttered.

"On the not-so-bright side, is _your intelligence_ , because you took the only chance of us getting out of here and turned him into a giant...douche-kebab," Damon scoffed, and gestured over to Kai's dead body, "-and yeah, he's not exactly gonna be missed, I'll give you that, but I'm still waiting for the ' _oh my god, I just killed a guy!? oh crap! I'm the worst! What have I done?!_ ' freak out, Barbarella? Any minute now? Can you schedule it in for approximately here on the Zima bottle? I'd rather be trashed for it, if possible."

I ignored the other crap, and posed to him, "think about it, Damon. What prison gives an inmate a key?"

"Is that a trick question? Or is this stuff actually starting to kick in..." he asked and cradled his bottle close to his chest.

"I think the Gemini coven used a Bennett spell to create this place. What if that's why Bonnie's Grams sent us here?" I posed.

"This is the face I make when I don't understand you," Damon declared and went cross-eyed.

"Look...the power of the Phoenix, it was always in the blood. Klaus drained it once and I came sort of close to death," I explained, "Bonnie and I well and truly switched. It feels like...I think that Bonnie's Grams planned to put Bonnie here because she knew that she had the power to get out. Now, I have the Ascendant, a massive celestial event to draw from, plus a burning desire to get away from you."

I held up the Ascendant closed my eyes and I recounted the spell inscribed inside the grimoire. The claws on the Ascendant pull free and twist. My gaze shot up to Damon's and I stumbled up to my feet, thrilled.

"Kai has been watching us for months, listening to everything we've been saying, gathering up the whole story, and testing me. _Th_ _at_ is why Kai wouldn't kill me. He needed a Bennett...or the next closest thing. I was his only way out of here!" I explained, and started walking away from him.

"Whoa, where are you going, Nancy Drew?" Damon asked.

"Home," I told him, "you coming?"

* * *

The sky above us was steadily darkening as the eclipse progressed; the cave was growing ever darker; any minute now. Damon sat on a rock beside me and watched intently, chugging the rest of his drink. I stood directly under the hole in the roof of the cave, where the light would pool through in good time. I used the Ascendant to slice into the palm of my hand and then clenched my bloody fist above it, dripping the blood down onto the device.

"Okay," I whispered and looked over at Damon, whose attention had not left me once. I breathed hard and looked up at the blue eclipse light seeping through the hole in the roof. I closed my eyes and began to chant; just like before, the Ascendant clicked and opened up to me. We stared back at each other, both bursting with hope, and I told him, "it's time, Damon."

Damon placed his empty bottle down, carefully, and then rubbed his hands together, excitedly. He joined me under the direct light of the eclipse and suggested, "alright. Let's get awkward." I smiled back at the memory, back to the beginning of this journey, if you could call it one; we hadn't gone very far, geographically. He placed his hand under mine cradling the Ascendant, and asked, "like this?"

"Yeah," I nodded back at him.

"I'm sure there are about a billion people you'd rather be here with..." Damon said.

The one hundred and forty-three days that Damon and I had spent together were some of my hardest to date; but they weren't _all_ trying, they weren't _all_ painful; few were boring; few were absent of laughter and fun. We were bonded forever by this experience. He was never my first choice of someone to have my back, someone who would stick around, or someone to open up to, but I knew in that moment that Damon was now a permanent fixture in my life, another brother, and probably my best friend. I smiled up at him and shook my head, and I rasped emotionally, "not exactly."

Damon smiled back at me.

"Let's go-AH!" I screamed out.

It all fell down. All of it. An arrow zipped through the air, out of nowhere, and seared straight into my stomach. I was knocked back from the impact; the Ascendant flew out of my hand. Damon, startled, whirled around to see Kai standing with a crossbow pointed directly at him.

"Forgetting someone?" Kai asked the cave.

Damon stared back at him, incredulous, speechless.

"Did you really think that I hadn't tried to kill myself before?" Kai scoffed and reloaded his crossbow, "-because I had. Lots of times, lots of ways..."

Damon looked back at his very human friend, grunting in searing pain, like a deer shot by an amateur hunter, not granted the swift mercy of a kill shot. At first I didn't feel it. I didn't compute that I'd been shot. And then...then I felt...everything.

Kai saw Damon's eyes trail from me, over to the Ascendant nearby, and he curtly informed Damon, "grab that, and the next arrow goes in her heart. Your choice."

Damon flashed over to me, and he pulled me up into his arms. I bawled at having been moved.

"Okay, I got ya, I got ya," Damon whispered to me, and then yanked the arrow out of my stomach in one sharp motion.

I cried out in agony; I couldn't control my breathing. Damon bit down into his wrist, ready to heal me, but Kai rushed forward to grab the Ascendant.

"DAMON, NO!" I screamed out.

He flashed into Kai and shoved him back into the wall of the cave. They struggled with each other. Kai dropped the Ascendant in the tussle. I clawed and dragged myself across the cave-floor towards the Ascendant. I ignored my hand splatting down in the trail of blood I was leaving behind me; the tears burning their way down my cheeks; the weakening tremble I couldn't shake off.

Kai stabbed Damon with an arrow and held it there. Damon grunted in pain, and tried to fight against him and yank it out.

I knew that I was bleeding out; my vision was growing hazy; my limbs were not listening to me; they shook and they crumpled, but I saw the blue light, and I could see that I was close.

Kai flipped Damon over; he lorded over him, shoving the arrow in deeper.

I reached the Ascendant. It was cold in my outstretched hand. I grabbed it.

"Ro...get...out of here!" Damon hollered out.

"I'm not going to make it," I huffed out, but smiled as I caught his gaze and said, "-but you are."

I held my hand out, and with the last of my energy I hollered out, "MOTUS!"

Kai was flung away from Damon. He slammed into the ground along with the arrow he so desperately latched on to. I hauled Damon off the wall, and flung him underneath the blue light of the eclipse, and then...I tossed him the Ascendant.

"DON'T!" Kai bellowed out.

Damon stared down at the Ascendant in his hands, wholly confused. It untwisted and clicked in his hand.

"No!" he cried and then hollered back at me, as the Ascendant twisted one more time into a definitive click, "NO!"

I forced my eyes awake for one second longer. I wanted to see it. I wanted to know. I saw the flash of brilliant light, and I saw that he was gone. The Ascendant remained; it fell to ground and shattered. Kai screamed out furiously. I smiled, and I kept smiling. He was gone. He made it. A final tear seared its way down my cheek. It was okay. I saw. I crumpled down to the ground, and closed my eyes for the final time.


	74. Look Who's Awake

_Annie? You are not dead._ _Control the bleeding._ _Control the infection._ _You are not safe, Annie._

"Mom calls me that..." I muttered under my breath, and scrunched up my face.

I groaned as the pain came seeping back into my body. I was waking up. I blinked, hazily, for a brief moment expecting to see my father staring back at me, but finally saw that I was lying on the couch, in the den of the Salvatore House. I followed the hardest concentration of pain and my eyes took in the redness soaked through my shirt; it all came flooding back to me.

"Oh. Look who's awake," Kai announced, delightedly, and asked me with sickeningly sweet concern, "how do you feel, Rosie?"

"...like you shot me with an arrow," I grunted back and sat up cautiously, with agonizing difficulty; it hurt to exhale.

" _Right_. Any-hoo, I have no idea how you managed to shatter the Ascendant into a billion pieces, but we need to put it together before the eclipse at 12:28," Kai determined.

Another eclipse? I'd been out of it for an entire day; my wound was undoubtedly packed full of cave-floor debris; my pounding, woozy head was a clear sign of blood loss; hearing my father's voice in my head so loud and clear as though he were standing right in front of me, diagnosing me? Yeah, that wasn't as reassuring as it sounds.

"Do you want to help me?" Kai asked, cordially, "I know that you're a puzzle person."

"I don't want to help," I seethed and staggered up to my feet. I clutched my aching middle and I scorned back at him, "you're a psychopath. This place is your prison. I'm not letting you out. Besides, you'll just kill me the minute we get out."

"You've been through a trauma. Your memory's probably a little fuzzy right now, so you may be thinking that your magic will protect you, but all I have to do is hold your hand, and your magic suddenly becomes mine," Kai reminded me with a quick snatch of my wrist. He channeled my magic, aggressively. I crumpled up and cried out; weakened even further. He whispered into my ear, "what was that? Huh? What? You're gonna do the spell and finally get us home?"

I clambered for the letter opener on the sideboard and jammed it into his neck. My wound screamed from the exertion. Kai tumbled backwards over the coffee table and slammed down to the floor. He passed out. I swept the broken pieces of the Ascendant off the table into a bag and grabbed Damon's prized bottle of bourbon before dragging my broken body out of there.

* * *

"Anti...biotics. Pain...killers," I kept repeating out loud, attempting to silence my father's words floating around in front of me.

I limped inside the hospital and rummaged around a supply closet; the drugs were kept under much looser wraps in 1994. I swallowed a few pills and washed them down with bourbon. It tasted pretty gross; I cursed Damon's choice of signing-off beverage. I bit down on a bundle of bandages before using the remainder of the alcohol to disinfect my wound quickly, and then I worked on wrapping a clean bandage around my abdomen.

I think the inadvisable medley started kicking in at this point because all I started to feel was...hot, and my dad was long gone. I glanced over at the clock and started to re-assemble the Ascendant fragments: 10:45am.

"An hour and 43 minutes," I huffed out, "I can do this."

It was coming together, until it was done...all the pieces I had were in place. I couldn't find the last piece. I froze, and then released a demented chuckle at the fact that this was actually happening. I swore and cursed him. The power shut off inside the hospital; the lights cut out; machines whirled down.

"Well..." I muttered, "look who's awake..."

I rose from my chair and I walked out into the corridor, cautiously, searching around for him. Kai appeared at the other end, waiting for me, holding the last tiny missing piece of the Ascendant between his thumb and his finger.

"Looking for this?" he asked, with a smirk, and he started pacing his way casually towards me, "you _stole_ the Ascendant, naughty girl. You weren't planning on using it and leaving me behind, were you? You left a trail of blood in the driveway. Figured where else would you stop and play nurse?"

"Vados!" I roared.

Glass windows shattered; cabinets exploded. Carts, chairs, trash cans; it all flew in Kai's direction. I turned and ran down the hallway as fast as I physically could. The emergency exit was locked. I slammed into another. The third door released me out into the parking lot. I ran back into Damon's car; I turned the keys but the ignition wouldn't catch; again, no, again, nothing. I didn't laugh this time. Kai appeared in the rear-view mirror; behind me, sat casually in the backseat. He wrapped his arm around my throat, pinning me back against the seat.

I screamed and clawed at him, crying out, "aah! Ungh! Get off me!"

Kai spoke right into my ear, maintaining his vice-like grip around my neck, and squeezed ever tighter, "I thought about taking the keys, but that would be like taking the cheese out of a mousetrap, right, Rosie? Although, you know, fun fact, mice don't actually like cheese. Isn't that great? Shh, shh, shh. Shh, shh, shh. So we have an hour until the eclipse. It's time to go home, Rosie."

I stopped flailing. I stopped doing anything, and passed out.

* * *

 **The Cave**

"I've got something that might cheer you up. Look, I brought you a present!" Kai declared and presented my teddy-bear, "ta-da! Ms. Cuddles! Thought you might want to bring her along."

I glared coldly back at the guy who had just strangled me to the point I'd passed out and kidnapped me. I didn't say a word. I sat on the rock where Damon had perched the day before, with my hands tied in front of me.

"I know you think I'm a monster," Kai lamented, "I mean, I did murder or heavily maim most of my immediate family, but after a long period of self-reflection, I've come to the conclusion that I could have handled my anger better.

"You said you wanted to get out of here...and I quote: to give the rest of the Gemini Coven an excruciating death," I reminded him.

"I didn't mean it. Honestly, I would do anything to get my family back, and the thing I'm most scared of...is trying to figure out how to live in the world again. I'm sort of hoping you've been a positive influence on me. You're a good person, Rosie. You're brave, loyal, patient. I want to be more like you," Kai declared, and then picked up Ms. Cuddles to ask me in a high-pitched voice, " _what do you say? Friends_?"

"Let's just go home," I groaned.

Kai took out the Ascendant and presented it to me.

"I can't do it with my hands tied," I told him, mimicking his stupid jazz hand dance.

Kai smirked and told me, "you're cute! Promise not to impale me again, _friend_?"

"Ditto," I uttered as he freed me.

"It's now or never," Kai declared.

I never imagined I would have to do this again; I was so sure it was curtains for me last night. We waited for the eclipse to reach it's apex point. I cut my hand along the same line, and I dripped the blood onto the Ascendant. I started to chant; Kai abruptly grabbed my arm; the first time he'd done so without siphoning away my power.

"Just in case you thought you'd try to go without me," he whispered.

A drop of blood landed on Ms. Cuddles by...happenstance. I continued chanting the spell: _Sangina Mearma, Ascendarum Cavea. Sangina Mearma, Ascendarum Cavea. Sangina Mearma, Ascendarum Cavea. Sangina Mearma, Ascendarum Cavea._ The Ascendant clicked as the eclipse emerged overhead.

"So long, 1994," Kai chuckled away, delightedly.

 _Sangina Mearma...un magica._

"What the hell's happening?" Kai eventually huffed out; we were still standing alone in the cave, in 1994.

"I don't know," I said, with a disinterested shrug.

"Keep going! Hurry!" he barked.

"I can't," I told him simply.

"Keep going!" he insisted.

"I can't. I've lost my magic," I informed him.

"What-what are you talking about? You were just doing the spell," he scorned. He grabbed both of my arms and looked at my unfazed demeanor, incredulously. He shook his head and he muttered, "there's nothing there. There's no magic."

"It's so strange...I wonder if I accidentally put it somewhere," I mused, "...oh, I remember now. I put it somewhere safe."

I smirked back at him, triumphantly. I enjoyed it so, so thoroughly.

"Where did you put your magic?" Kai demanded.

"Do you remember saying you wanted to be more like me...brave, loyal, _patient_?" I reminded him.

"You put it in the bear, didn't you?" Kai eventually scoffed. He turned around and dumped out his bag; his many pathetic relics of the by-gone decade scattered across the cave floor; Ms. Cuddles did not. She wasn't there. Kai yelled out and tossed the bag in fury, "COME ON!"

He stormed back over to me and huffed out, "where's the stupid bear, hmm?"

"Oh, it's gone," I assured him, with a little shrug of defeat, "I guess we're stuck here, forever. Sorry."

* * *

 **Day two hundred and four**

The trunk of the car was hauled open; the sunlight was blinding.

"Wakey, wakey!" Kai sang and dragged me out by my bound wrists.

"How did I..." I grumbled and surveyed my unfamiliar surroundings.

"-get so lucky to arrive here on a private flight piloted by yours truly?" Kai chuckled and gestured around at the general woodland, "oh, you would have been super-impressed with my flying skills, but I'd already knocked you out. I used the last of your second-hand magic to make you go night-night."

I glared back at him, and scoffed, "you could have used that for anything, and that's what you chose-"

"You wouldn't have come otherwise," he interrupted.

"Come where, exactly?" I asked him, tersely.

"Portland, Oregon, stomping grounds of Courtney Love, Tonya Harding, and tons of other awesome people," Kai explained.

"You could have brought me anywhere in the world, and you took me to Portland?" I shot back.

"This is where I grew up!" Kai declared and sliced the rope binding my wrists roughly.

"Ow!" I groaned.

"I've been counting eclipses since I was imprisoned on this empty planet, and according to my running tally, I've been here for 6,771 supernaturally repeating days, just a few more than your measly 204, but I digress," Kai explained, with a hearty chuckle, "that means in the real world, which we'll never get back to because you sent your magic away in a teddy bear, today is my favorite day of the year."

"And what day is that?" I asked.

"Thanksgiving!" Kai exclaimed, "I'm cooking you dinner."

He began to saunter away from me, with a spring in his step.

"Oi! Just stop! My magic is gone, which means that we will be stuck here forever. We agreed to split the world in half and go our separate ways-" I scorned back at him.

"We never technically carved out each half-and okay, look, you're mad, I get it. I knocked you out, kidnapped you against your will...uh, twice now, but can't you see that me cooking you dinner is me trying to apologize?" Kai implored.

"I will never trust you or like you or enjoy your company for so much as one second, so just quit trying," I informed him and politely requested, "just let me leave here unharmed!"

He looked hurt; it was almost convincing. He bit the inside of his cheek and slumped his shoulders, and with a look of defeat, he agreed, somewhat, "Fine. Can we at least have one last dinner conversation before my eternity of alone-ness resumes?"

"So, you agree?" I asked him, "one last dinner, and then we peacefully go our separate ways."

"In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I'll even let you take my car," he said.

"Well then, lead the way," I said.

Kai smiled widely and then spun to lead us through a path in the forest, into a clearing in which a pretty white house sat. He gestured haphazardly around and professed, "Ah. Memories! Pitter-patter of little siblings' feet, witchy-woo chanting in the air...mom and dad calling me an abomination."

"Why did you want to come back here?" I asked him.

"Because I can finally show it to someone," he offered back, "my coven goes out of their way to make sure no one finds us. But, since they're not here to be paranoid freak shows, mi casa es su casa. Come on."

I reluctantly followed Kai inside the house.

* * *

 **One drawn-out meal later...**

"Come on, humour me!" Kai implored.

"You chewed your last bite for 45 minutes. I've humored you enough," I said, following his lead back through the blood-stained hallways, out to the front yard. This house was exactly as it was on May 10, 1994, exactly how Kai had left it, and I couldn't wait to never step foot in it again. I reminded him, "I had Thanksgiving-spaghetti with you. Now, keep up your end of the deal and give me your car keys."

"Let me just teach you how the clutch works. It's finicky," Kai insisted.

"Quit stalling and give me your damn keys," I insisted right back.

"Okay. You caught me. But...don't you want to hear how my story ends?" he asked, coyly.

"I've read the newspaper. You murdered your siblings, and your coven sent you to live in this prison world," I said dryly.

"My _family_ sent me to this prison world. My father, the great coven leader, he treated me like crap for 22 years and then he locked me here. It's like his...like his kids didn't even matter. Coven always came first no matter what," Kai recounted, "my parents were delaying the merge, pushed me away, kept having children until another set of twins were born; in our coven, twins are in line to be leaders. I killed 4 of our brothers and sisters to make a point, but I was really targeting Lukas and Olivia. Jo came out of hiding and offered to go along with the original plan."

He kept laying on the 'daddy didn't love me' stuff real thick; not thick enough to mask the murder and mutilation, mind. He was attempting to manipulate me, emotionally; I assumed at the time it was just to keep the only other human being around, to make me feel sorry for him; little did I know, he was working on multiple levels. Kai led us across the front yard, towards an old tree stump.

"So...Jo agreed to the merge?" I asked, aiming to hurry through this tale.

"Well, we needed a celestial event, so the plan was to use the power of the eclipse happening the next day. She even gathered our coven to help. They tricked me good. Instead of using the power of the eclipse for the merge, my dad used it to send me here, and where'd Jo's magic go? You know, it made zero sense. Magic doesn't just, disappear; but then you made yours disappear when you hid it in Ms. Cuddles; and it hit me. My sneaky little twin sister hid her magic...in this."

Kai rooted around in the pile of leaves nestled in the tree stump and withdrew a hunting knife.

"Hmm. Still there," I uttered and took a step back.

"Still here and still full of magic," Kai declared.

Kai closed his eyes and I backed away from him again. Kai sighed and let go of the knife, leaving it floating in midair; my blood ran cold.

"Well, it was," he explained, "I just sucked it out."

"You have magic again. Good for you," I said.

"I also have the Ascendant," Kai reminded me.

"Doesn't matter. You need a Bennett witch to do the spell," I reminded him.

"About that...I've watched you do the spell twice now," he said, and plucked the knife out of the air, tossing it between his hands, absentmindedly, "I don't think I need a Bennett witch to do the spell. I think all I actually need...is Bennett blood."


	75. Forgive Me

It was dark out when I woke up, bleeding again, and it was dark for a long time. Kai was gone, long gone; he left me with nothing but his stupid pager; the number 03171 was punched in; I LIED spelled upside down. The bastard had taken the car. I was stranded in the middle of nowhere, completely alone. The numbness set in. I didn't even cry. I curled up in the least blood-splattered room in the home, and I waited for daylight to break.

 **On day two hundred and seven** , en route back to Mystic Falls, Kai's stupid pager started buzzing away in the passenger seat. I reached over and saw a phone number was flashing back at me. I wondered whether Kai had screwed up. He _did_ need me to do the spell. Honestly, who the heck else was that going to be? The area code was...Mystic Falls. I pulled over at the next gas station, and used the pay phone.

I froze. Damon's voice crackled on the other end of the line, "Kai, if you so much as hurt one hair on her annoying little witch head, I will kill you and-"

"That was so sweet," I huffed out, emotionally, "why'd you ruin it by calling me annoying?"

A scuffle ensued, and then my sister spoke, "Rosie?"

"Elena?!" I cried out, "Elena, is that you?"

"Yes! It's me, I'm here. I'm at the Salvatore house in...in 1994," Elena explained.

"I can't believe I'm hearing your voice right now. How are you here?" I asked her.

I thought I was hallucinating. I thought Kai was hiding behind a gas-pump, ready to jump out and cackle 'I got you! I got you _so_ good!'. She told me that I was coming home. She was here, for me. Elena was bringing me back home. I told her where I was, dragged to Portland, ditched, and now I was making my way back across the country. I told her that I'd hot-wired a car. She was weirdly impressed. I didn't tell her the full story of Hayley imparting said wisdom; there wasn't time. I needed to white-knuckle it back to Mystic Falls in order to hitch a ride back to 2012, or what was left of it; I could do it; I could get there in time. I took a minute to collect myself before sprinting out of the phone-booth.

Damon had left a note at his house. He told me that he and Elena would be waiting on our front porch. I ran up to the Gilbert House with about a half hour to spare; I'd made it; I'd done it. They weren't on the front porch. They weren't there. Past trauma be damned, I burst inside that house and called out their names. I went through every single empty room, I saw every inch of the empty house I had never wanted to see, and then I staggered outside, back onto the porch. I looked around the back of the house, and I came full circle, back to the front door.

They were supposed to be here. They were supposed to be waiting for me. They were gone...they were never really there? I fought my emotions, I fought to hold it in. I wanted to be numb again; this was...cruel. My legs buckled. I collapsed. I fell down onto my knees, in sheer despair, and wailed.

* * *

Forgive me. I don't like to talk about this time in my life. But...I know that it's a part of my story; it informs my decisions, for better or for worse. Okay, more often it was for worse. It hurts me to think back on it. Before I was sentenced to Hell, I was hopeful, I was forgiving, I was patient, I was kind. Even before I triggered the Phoenix, and my mind cleared and focused on becoming a force for good, I had faith that everything was going to work out, and that I was going to be okay, and that more often than not, the good guys would come out on top. I could do anything I believed in, anything I worked hard for. I was good. Or at least, I tried to be. But now, I would sit in deafening silence and trace the scabbed over scars...on the palm of my hand, both on my torso, and I was filled with nothing but hate.

I tried. I picked myself up off the front porch of my childhood home that night and I tried. On what would have been the day of the Tree Decorating Ceremony, one of my favourite stupid small-town holidays, I waited for the eclipse, and I hollered up at the sky: _Shut up! I'm ignoring you! Today is the tree decorating ceremony, and you are not telling me otherwise!_ I spent the entire day gathering decorations, chopping down an evergreen, dragging it over to the school, and erecting it in the parking lot. I trundled around the tree, popcorn garland in hand, and thought about Elena and I eating most of our supplies every single year; I chuckled remembering Caroline exclaiming 'let's get these garlands on the tree before they end up on your hips!'. I dragged an extension cord plugged into another, and another, all the way out of the school towards the tree, and I counted down. My small, simple tree illuminated and twinkled back at me. It was beautiful, in it's own little way, but it wasn't magic; it wasn't like standing at the foot of the awesome towering tree, year on year, mesmerized by the lights, catching every individual decoration placed by a different member of the community; it didn't tell a story. I tried. I took out a lighter and I brought it up to the branch; the tree erupted and set ablaze.

* * *

 **Day three hundred and thirty-six - April 3rd 2013 -** _the last day of my life._

I cooked bacon and eggs with my pancakes. I blasted Whitney Houston (all of her albums were poorly hidden among Damon's personal collection) just like my mom would when I was little, and I danced around the kitchen. I danced and sang my heart out until my lungs burned: _How will I know if he really loves me? Oooooh, I wanna dance with somebody! I get so emotional, baby! I'm your baby tonight!_

"Happy birthday, Jeremy," I wished, out loud, and raised a glass in the air, "cheers."

I downed the glass and poured another. I toasted to Damon getting out in October last year and toasted Kai leaving in November, for a different reason. Five months I'd been alone; five. I played Silver Linings one last time and I drank and I drank some more until I finally stopped dancing. I raised a shaking hand and I mumbled, through a flash of a forced smile, "and...that's all I can think of...I'm all out of good...so...cheers to making it this far."

My eyes prickled and I started to cry. I shook my head, and declared into my glass, "phew. Okay. Okay, think it's time I cut myself off," I raised my arm once again, feebly, not as high as before, and I scoffed, "to our fallen friend."

 _To who? Who's she talking about?_

I poured the remainder of my glass out onto the floor and then launched it at the wall. I snatched up the bottle in a blind rage and smashed it too. I swiped the counter top, sending crockery flying, books scattering, CD's clattering around.

"DAMMIT!" I screamed out as loud as I could.

I listened to my voice simmer out and disappear into nothing; all I could hear was my own heavy breathing. I snatched up the stupid video recorder Damon had recorded those stupid pointless skits on, and staggered out of the room. I closed the garage door, leaning my entire weight against the button, and then started Damon's car engine. I slid down to the floor and rolled my head back against the car.

 _No! Come on! You don't want to do this! You can't die!_

I hit record and spoke into the camera, "it's probably a waste of time even recording anything, it'll just wipe...like some of Damon's edgier skits. And...if by some stupid miracle you're coming for me right now, and you get here just after, then...sorry...this will be extra depressing...do I seriously still have hope?" I huffed out a pathetic excuse for a laugh, and I confessed, "I can't do another day, let alone another year of this. Please tell everyone that I'm sorry."

 _Ro._

"Tell them that I tried. I really tried to make it work. Um..." I whispered the words, and struggled to hold back the tears, "you know, I just miss too much. I miss saying hi to strangers...ordering dinner in a restaurant, laughing with my friends...but um, spending every day here alone with no one to talk to, going weeks without speaking, it's just the loneliness. It's uh-I can't take it. And I only know one way to turn it off. I'm sorry."

 _Please, no._

"Jeremy. I...I hope you're living your life with no regrets, and no hate in your heart. I hope you fight for the life you want, and don't ever give up on yourself, and stay strong...that's...dad says...stronger than you know," I uttered and started coughing deeply, "stay...strong, stronger than you know."

Come on kid, it's not the end of the world, you're stronger than that, you're stronger than you know. The camera clattered across the floor; I couldn't breathe. I coughed and spluttered my lungs up and struggled to get myself up. My hands slid against the car; I couldn't grip.

 _Come on, Rosie. Get up! Come on._

"Stronger...I know," I uttered and screamed out, "I'm not gonna die in this place!"

 _Come on! Get up! ROSIE! GET UP! Open! Come on!_

I slumped down to the floor; the noxious gas filled my lungs and choked me completely. I struggled and clawed my way towards the door, feebly, with my final breaths. Suddenly, the garage door trundled opened on its own. The rush of cold fresh air blasted its way into my lungs, and I gasped. Daylight pierced through into the garage, blinding me, disorienting me, and then for a brief blink of a moment I thought I saw...a figure.

"J-Jeremy?!" I rasped.

I didn't dwell on the how/what/why; I couldn't. I blinked and whatever it was, was gone, just like everything else in this Hell-hole. My heart broke when Jeremy told me many months later, that he was sat beside me the entire time, screaming at me not to do this.

* * *

The kitchen would be resetting any moment now; right on schedule. I sipped on a glass of water and steadied my breathing. Something new caught my eye. I stepped over the broken glass, carefully, and picked up the road atlas that was lying open on the kitchen table: Nova Scotia.

I looked all around the kitchen and laughed, genuinely, for the first time in months, "Damon, you're a genius."


	76. The One And Only

It was the **three hundred and forty-first day** I'd spent stuck inside this stupid prison world; another twenty four days and I'd hit that nice round annual marker. I had two broken toes, nine blisters, and an ear infection, but I didn't care. I Phesmatos-ed the crap out of a magic Canadian rock and by the good grace of Silas' headstone, I had my magic back.

"When that eclipse hits 12:28, in...two entire minutes time, I am going home," I hollered out to the roof of the cave, "you hear that?! Home! This is it. I'm ready. There's no one to stop me. I have magic and the Ascendant and the eclipse-"

The cave began to rumble and shake, and then, it fell completely dark. I regained my footing, and looked around at all of my belongings that hadn't reset: my backpack, my half-empty water bottle, my grocery store sunglasses. I clambered over to the hole and looked straight up to the world above; a night sky looked back at me, and then snow started drifting down.

"No. No! NO!" I groaned and sprinted towards the cave entrance.

* * *

"Okay," I told myself, through chattering teeth, "clearly, I've been dropped into a snowy tundra Hell dimension...either that or I finally had that psychotic break. Ha-ha. Real vivid one. Freaking freezing one!"

I stopped suddenly and noticed the footprints on the ground in front of me, crunched into the new layer of snow. Someone was here. Kai? They looked too small to be his. I followed the footprints along to a clearing: a beautiful manor house stood in the distance. My eyes darted up to the sky; a green light was cast over the world; it was...the Northern Lights? I was speechless; I lost myself for a while, mesmerized by the gorgeous dancing colors.

"That magical enough for you?" I scoffed to myself; way more magical than a ten-foot tree.

I brought my attention back down to the ground, and headed for the house before I caught hypothermia. The house certainly looked dated from the outside, but the inside was something else.

"Incendia," I requested.

Several candles in the house all lit up at once. I called out. No one answered. I mooched around, and looked for clues. A journal laid out in what seemed to be the library of the house documented the author's experience of the Northern Lights; a recurring celestial event...just like the eclipse in the 1994 Prison World. The last entry in this journal: November 1, 1903. My heart stopped at two familiar faces peering back at me through an ornate golden frame set up on the desk.

"Oh, my god..." I whispered, and took a closer look at the Salvatore brothers smiling back at me; they were both posed on lawn chairs, with a thin beautiful woman stood proudly behind them.

The house suddenly started shaking, violently; the picture frame slipped from my hands and the glass shattered on the floor. I snatched up the photo, and my bag, and bolted out. The front door burst open into a brilliant white light; I blinked and I found myself back in the woods in the 1994 Prison World. The eclipse was beginning overhead; I checked my watch: nearly 12:28.

"Oh, God," I cried out.

I sprinted as fast as I could; the prison worlds kept shifting between 1994 and 1903; I dodged trees; I slipped and slid in the sloshing snow. I made it to the hole.

"I can do this. The Northern Lights, the eclipse, they're both recurring events. I can get out of here," I assured myself as I cut my hand on the Ascendant, "come on, come on. _Sangina mearma, ascendarum cavea. Sangina mearma, ascendarum cavea. Sangina mearma, ascendarum cavea. Sangina mearma-_

"Who are you?" someone asked.

I spun and saw a woman dressed in turn-of-the-century garb staring back at me; it was the proud woman from the photograph.

"Who are you?" I replied, and blinked, and she was gone.

* * *

 **Salvatore Boarding House - Kitchen**

I burst into the house and hollered out. No one was here. I wondered around every room and saw glimpses of reassurance here and there; Elena's scarf; new candy wrappers; iPod. It wasn't until I picked up the newspaper, abandoned mid-sift-through at the kitchen table, that I finally let myself believe it: Monday. April. 8th. **2013**. I did it. I...I'm home. I'm here. I burst into tears, and I flapped my arms around and I spun and I laughed and I truly didn't know what to do with myself. I jammed that iPod into the dock and I blasted the last thing Elena was listening to: Icona Pop - I Love It!

Then, the back door opened, and I heard him.

"Where'd you go, Elena? Call me back," Damon rasped into his phone, and slammed the door behind him. He sauntered through into the kitchen, whining, "what the crap is going on-"

He looked dead on his feet; he was dressed in a black suit. He looked over and he saw me and he stopped. The tension of the day instantly disappeared and he stared at me, in tickled disbelief. I turned down the music.

"Rosie?" Damon said, barely.

"The one and only," I whispered back, through teary eyes.

A massive smile spread across both of our faces and we didn't quite know what to do. Damon laughed and opened his arms wide and I launched myself at him; I jumped up into his embrace. He squashed me tightly against him and he rocked me around. I burst into tears, again.

"Oh, you made it!" He cheered.

* * *

 **Whitmore College - Elena, Bonnie and Caroline's Dorm Room**

I'd recounted my escape to Damon, and shown him the picture I'd snatched from his childhood home. He didn't believe that I'd actually seen the woman in this image: his mother; she'd died many moons ago, when he was a kid. He blamed the hallucination on the trauma, the loneliness, the final snap in my psyche. I didn't have the time nor the energy to argue with him; I had more pressing things to be doing, like reuniting with my family. I headed straight for Whitmore.

I could hear Elena on the other side of the door.

"Okay, look, I'm just gonna look around campus, maybe someone's seen her. Just let me know if you find anything, okay?" Elena said.

She sighed heavily, and hung up her phone. She stood silently in her dorm room, all alone, her fist cradled her phone, propped against her head; she was worried and deep in thought, she hadn't even noticed me slip inside the room. I traced her outline for a second, before I piped up.

"Looks like you could use a friend," I told her, and she spun around instantly at the sound of my voice. I shrugged and said, "-or maybe a sister?"

Her mouth fell open, and she uttered, "oh...my god. Ro? H-how are you-"

"Alive?" I finished her question for her and quipped, "you'd think I'd be used to this part by now-"

Elena rushed over and collided with me, tearfully. We stayed up all night, filling in the almost year-long gap in our lives. I learned more than she did; every time there was a pause in her story, I'd urged her to tell me more.


	77. Take Me Where?

**Whitmore College - Elena, Bonnie and Caroline's Dorm Room**

Elena opened a bottle of champagne to accompany our modest campus breakfast as I raided her closet.

"Oooo, a not-flannel blouse, not-flannel t-shirts, and ooh! Ooh! I love this not-flannel V-neck," I squealed.

"Take it. It's yours. Suck it, 1994!" she declared and popped the champagne open. I jumped in fright at the loudest noise I'd heard in a long time. She chuckled, and poured us two glasses, "whew! Ha! So, I bought this bottle of champagne the same day that Damon and I thought we were gonna rescue you, but obviously we didn't, so I couldn't drink it. So, this is to you. You were stuck there all by yourself while we were back here, living our lives...and this is the worst toast ever."

I scoffed and I told her, "I'm back home. That's all that matters. Cheers."

We clinked our glasses together and drank; I downed my glass in one gulp.

"Okay..." Elena uttered and went to pour me another glass, "where were we? Oh, yes! I drove our brother away to Art School! And I did everything but literally drive him there myself; Bonnie took care of that. I'm so surprised that he actually went. He was just...broken after you left."

My ears prickled at the mention of Bonnie, and I asked, "hey, do me a favor? Don't tell him I'm back yet."

"Wait. You-you haven't called him yet?" Elena asked.

"I just...with everything that he went through, I just want to give him a chance at normalcy before we drag him back into all of this, you know?" I said and perched on the end of her bed, "and if he's gone to Art School, and he's happy, and he's with Bonnie...I-I don't want to mess anything up."

Elena was clearly not on board with that plan, she was a little taken aback. She eventually said, "yeah. No. I-I do want normalcy for him, too, but Ro, you should at least tell him you're okay."

"And I will, I'll tell him. I will," I assured her, "coming back to life is complicated. Trust me, I've done it before. It can take a minute to...you know. Besides, you have a roommate without her humanity in severe need of an intervention."

Caroline suddenly burst into the dorm room, with several shopping bags in tow.

"Caroline! Um, you're here," Elena uttered, surprised.

"And you're perceptive!" Caroline chimed back. She walked right past me without so much as a glance and dumped her many bags onto her bed.

"Uh, what are you doing?" Elena asked her, tentatively.

"Starting over. New everything!" She exclaimed and started pulling out all of her new purchases, "new sheets, new clothes. Hey, I even got us a new blow-dryer," she turned around to present the box and finally noticed my presence. She remarked, neutrally, "oh, my god. Rosanna's back. Hi. I thought you were trapped in 1994?"

"I got out," I replied, flatly.

"Huh," she uttered, as though that weren't even noteworthy, and then returned to her shopping bags.

"Uh, we-we've been worried about you, Care," Elena told her, hesitantly.

"You mean, you were worried about those around me. Like, if I killed them? Okay. Funny story. You remember Liam?" Caroline asked, patronizingly. She turned to me and explained, "oh, Elena dated this pre-med hottie, but then realized she still had feelings for Damon, so she compelled him to forget that they ever had a thing."

"Caroline, what did you do to Liam?" Elena scorned.

"I ate him! And he was delicious. I mean, you know how cute guys just naturally taste better?" Caroline laughed.

"You killed Elena's ex?" I asked her, in disbelief.

Caroline scoffed and requested of me, snottily, "okay, can I just tell my story, please?" she turned back to Elena and muttered, "remind me why we're glad she's back again?"

"Please tell me that Liam is not dead," Elena scorned.

"Fine," Caroline sighed, dramatically, and recounted, "so, I was feeding, and then that little voice inside my head that tells me to stop? He never piped up. Liam collapsed on me, and splattered blood all over a real cute necklace of mine. Guh. Still haven't gotten that out. So, I was going to drain Liam of his blood, but then I was not really in the mood to drag his corpse through the woods. Definitely not in those heels. I thought dumpster, but then everyone's always being found in dumpsters these days and since I was the last person to be seen with him, I'd be questioned by the police, and what if one of them reminded me of my dead mother?"

We stared back at her.

"So, you didn't kill him because it would be inconvenient?" Elena asked.

"Elena, I shut off my humanity. I didn't turn into an idiot. The last thing I want to do is give you a reason to ruin my life," she declared, and took a swig out of our champagne bottle.

"It's so weird. It's like she's Caroline, but she's not," I said, unnerved.

"Oh, Rosie, how we all just missed your commentary!" Caroline scoffed, "anyway, in return for my good behavior, I want a year where I don't have to feel any pain, grief or remorse. You're not gonna lock me in a cell and dry me out, and you're definitely not gonna try to trigger some latent emotion hoping to snap my humanity back on."

"So, all you want is for us to leave you alone, and then you promise not to kill anyone?" Elena asked her.

"That's all I want," Caroline chimed and then turned serious, "now granted, if anyone tries anything to flip my switch back on-and I mean anything-I'll become your worst nightmare."

Elena and I exchanged anxious glances.

"Great! I'm gonna get a latte," Caroline beamed. She grabbed her purse and swaggered past us, "see ya!"

* * *

 **Warehouse Party - Whitmore**

Stefan got a tip that Caroline was headed to a Warehouse...Rave thing. It wasn't my first, second, or ninety-second choice of activity for my re-introduction to the real world, but we needed to go. She needed us.

"I got a call from Bonnie. They're both settled in to their new apartment. It's small but cute. Right on campus-" Elena recounted.

"I will call him soon," I assured her.

"Okay, please do. I'm not a huge fan of lying to people unnecessarily," Elena shot back. I had a smart remark just itching to fly out but I decided to hold my tongue.

We heard and felt the party long before we found it; thumping techno music and strobe lights blared out of the warehouse. Two security guards pulled plastic sheeting back for us revealing an overwhelming myriad of sights; faces plastered with neon face-paint; skimpy sweaty outfits; shirtless guys; glow-sticks galore; the techno music surrounded us as we made our way through the crowd. Everyone was cheering loudly, laughing, dancing, talking, and spilling drinks on one another.

We split up to find Caroline faster. Elena mouthed 'Good Luck' to me before pushing her way through the crowd of ravers; I kept watching her until she completely disappeared from sight; I got pushed around and shoved some more; it was so stifling in there. My heart started pounding faster as I feverishly scanned the crowd, looking for a glimpse of familiarity.

"Wanna dance?" a random guy asked and started grinding up against me before he'd even finished asking the question.

"I'm actually looking for someone," I told him, and tried to duck out of his way.

"Come on, this is a party. Have fun!" he insisted, and slid his way back in front of me.

He grabbed my hand and pulled me further into the dance floor, further into the crowd. He started grinding up against me, and took in none of the visible cues that I was in no mood to party. He reached out to touch my waist, but I slapped him away.

"Hey. Down, boy," I scorned back at him.

"Just dancing," I laughed and rolled his eyes in disdain.

"Look, I really have to go find my friend," I insisted and pushed past him.

"I can't let you go. You're hot!" He exclaimed and pulled me into him. He kissed my neck and I saw red; towering blazing red. I brought my hands up to his and scorched them. He repelled back instantly, and screamed out in pain. He clutched his blistering bloody hands and moaned, "AAAAH! AAAAH! AHH! What the hell did you do?"

"Can't help it. I'm hot," I scorned back, tersely.

He stared back at me in frightened disbelief and then ran away, plowing his way through the crowd. The immediate crowd grumbled a little and looked around after the scarpering man, but they were decidedly too high to question the commotion any further and zoned back out. I continued to bumble my way through the crowd, growing ever more uncomfortable. My cellphone jingled: it was Damon.

I sighed, relieved, and I told him, "I can't believe I'm about to say this, but I'm glad you called."

"Uh-Oh! Caroline go off the rails? If so, I called it," Damon scoffed.

"Gloating in one of our closest friend's times of need? It's weird that I miss you," I laughed.

"Rosie, I thought I was clear- our relationship only exists within the confines of 1994," Damon joked.

I smiled in amusement, and hit back, "you think one phone call makes us friends?"

"You don't have to pretend, Ro-Ro. I'm like a fever you can't shake," Damon quipped.

"Yeah. Yeah. A disease," I uttered.

"You okay?" Damon asked, without missing a beat.

"Well, if scorching some douche-bag with my magic is okay, then, yeah! Peachy," I said, and then hesitantly asked him, "when you came back, did you just slide right back into your old life?"

"Oh, you mean the one where my brother was an auto mechanic, and my girlfriend forgot she loved me? Yep," Damon scoffed.

"Um...why, um, why did you call me?" I asked him.

"So...teensy favor. I don't know if you know this, but when Kai merged with Luke, he went through a...metamorphosis," Damon explained, "he went from a sociopathic caterpillar to a slightly less evil butterfly."

I rolled my eyes and scoffed, "yeah, and anyone who believes that is an idiot. Please don't ever repeat that name to me again, okay?"

Damon wavered and then said, "yeah, okay. Heh. Already forgot about it."

"What was the favor?" I asked him.

"Don't worry about it. I'll figure it out on my own. Happy raving!" Damon said.

* * *

I pushed through the crowd of ravers toward a clearer hallway and leant up against the wall. It was still deafeningly loud, and hot, and sweaty, but at least no one was in a super close radius. I called Hayley. It went straight to voicemail.

"Hey. It's me. Yeah. Boy, do I have a story for you. I'm stood at the edge of some weird techno-rave looking for my humanity-less friend and...I guess I came back from the dead last night. And...it's weird, and it's a lot...and I just burned a dude's hands for...being too handsy. I don't know what to say, or if you can even hear it over this. I just wanted to tell you that I'm back. I'm probably going to write it all down when I call Jeremy because this has been a pretty atrocious recap, right? Okay, bye-"

Suddenly, Damon appeared in the hallway, looking slightly sheepish.

"Hey! What are you doing here?" I asked him.

"Don't freak out, but, um..." Damon asked, and cleared his throat uncomfortably.

My heart plummeted out of my chest and flopped to the floor; I swore I'd heard the splat. Kai appeared from around the corner and stood beside him.

"Hi," Kai greeted me.

I looked between them both in a state of shock and confusion. Damon turned to Kai in annoyance, and insisted, "just get this over with."

"Um..." Kai muttered.

"Spit it out!" Damon implored, impatiently.

"Um...I wanted…" Kai muttered and his voice started to warp and warble.

I couldn't hear a word that he was saying. I was overwhelmed by a succession of flashbacks: _shot with an arrow in the stomach; strangled in Damon's car; stabbed with a knife in the gut_. I lived through it all again as I stared back at Kai, wide-eyed and too overwhelmed to speak. Kai read how fearful I was and he looked at me with concern, with that fake, manipulative, mask of emotion.

"Rosie, did you-did you hear what I said?" he asked me.

"If I see your face again, I will melt it off," I uttered, coldly.

I glared back at him threateningly, and then stalked past the both of them, blasting the side door open and disappearing into the night.

* * *

 **Warehouse - Exterior**

I stormed out of the party and just started walking, with purpose, but no real sense of direction. I slammed into someone and muttered out, "I'm sorry."

He froze, and I staggered away again, headed down another alleyway, worried that he'd say something, start something up. I didn't even look at his face, until he flashed before me, two seconds later. He put his hands on my upper arms to stop me and I bunched up in fright, and jumped back from him. He respected my retreat and put his hands up, in clear view.

"Sorry, love. Didn't recognise you, with the new 'do," Enzo declared, and pointed at my 90s box dye attempt at going back to brunette. I met his eyes, and he saw then that mine were completely broken. He faltered, not knowing what to do; my reaction to being touched spoke volumes, but everything else about my being yearned to break down and be brought in. He whispered, "what can I do?"

"I don't want to be here," I huffed out.

Enzo offered his hand without hesitation, and he nodded to me, and said, "alright, let's get you out of here then."

I took it. We didn't get far.

"Hey. Hey! Ro. Ro, Rosie, wait!" Damon implored, running after us. I slipped out of Enzo's hand and turned to face him. The streetlight above shattered, and littered him with glass. He held his hands up in a non-threatening manner and urged, "whoa! calm down."

"Walk away, Damon," Enzo suggested.

"Butt out, Enzo. What are you even doing here?" Damon scorned back and returned to me, he insisted, "it's just me. He's not here. It's okay. Rosie, this is about my mom. You were right! You did see her! That woman in the picture. You saw her because she is still over there. Kai knows a lot of stuff about my mom-"

"I don't care!" I interrupted him, "I told you I didn't want to see him again, and you did it anyway!"

"I know, but Ro-" Damon implored.

"Was I unclear?" I seethed out and the trashcan nearby was set ablaze.

"Damon," Enzo hissed, staring wide-eyed at the ever-mounting damage around us.

"He just wanted to talk-" Damon whined.

"Now I want to talk, so listen-" I scorned.

"I get that he hurt you-" Damon conceded.

"I SAID LISTEN!" I screamed.

Damon doubled over in pain and clutched at his stomach.

"I want you to feel what I felt," I seethed.

Damon groaned and watched the blood soak through his shirt from the wound I'd inflicted upon him.

"You were there the first time he hurt me; an arrow through the stomach. But you weren't there for what happened next, when he chased me through the hospital!" I recounted and caused Damon to feel the sizzle of the alcohol burning through his wound, "when he strangled me!" I choked Damon with magic, vehemently; he clawed and grasped at his throat, "he drugged me, he tied me up, and he stuck me in a trunk. And now, suddenly, he wants to be nice, huh? Start over?"

"Rosie..." Damon huffed out.

"Sound familiar?" I cried out, "he lied, and then he stabbed me again!"

Damon groaned out in agony and clutched at his stomach as blood started to pour out from the stab wound. I held it in, as long as Kai had, embedded deep.

"Then came the worst part, because when it was all over, he left me. Alone," I said and started to cry as I told him, "-and I wish that I could show you what that feels like, but I can't!"

I released him and the windows of the buildings lining the alley imploded, raining glass down on the street; car alarms went off from the shock-wave. Damon gasped and coughed and spluttered as he sighed out in relief.

"We have eyes on us. Wrap it up," Enzo suggested, tersely, noting the audience of concerned citizens peering out of their broken windows.

"And you are already starting to heal over, like it was nothing," I muttered, shakily, and lifted up my shirt to reveal the scars, "I didn't."

"Rosie...I'm sorry," Damon said.

"I don't care," I seethed and left him there.

"Please let me take you home," Enzo insisted after me.

"Where?!" I scoffed back at him, weakly, and walked away from them both.


	78. This Better Be Good

**Whitmore College - Elena, Bonnie and Caroline's Dorm Room**

I didn't want to go back to the Salvatore Boarding House; yes, it had become our home after Elena unceremoniously burned ours to the ground, and we were always welcome there, but I'd understandably grown rather sick of the place even with the reintroduction of modern conveniences, like WiFi. Plus, there was the whole 'Damon betrayed me' issue. So, I headed to the closest thing I had to a home: wherever Elena was. Bonnie had officially transferred to Santa Fe College to be with Jeremy, and Caroline was currently off the rails which meant that there were two vacant beds in Elena's dorm room. I occupied one, for the time being, whilst I decided what to do with the rest of my life. Elena had offered to compel the High School Administrator to grant me a diploma, or the College Admissions Board to squeeze me in somewhere here, but the school year was almost over, and I was still getting used to the fact that she was really stood in front of me, offering all of these suggestions. I told her that I just needed some time.

I braved going out to get a coffee on my own, venturing through the loud bustling campus, while I waited for Elena to finish up her class. Damon was stood outside the door when I got back, waiting on me.

"I need your help!" he begged as I pushed past him.

"I'm not helping you," I scorned back and tried to slam the door in his face, but Damon wedged his leg in the way.

"Ow," he whined, "oh, come on, if it was Enzo making googly eyes at you, you'd say yes!"

I spun around sharply, but I didn't bite. I reminded him, curtly, "I hate Kai, and you know that, and the first thing you did when I got back was throw him in my face to fake-apologize!"

"Yeah, and then I _real-apologized_ for being a dick," Damon reminded me.

"And here you are, less than 24 hours later, asking me to work with him," I argued.

"Rosie, we need Kai to get to 1903, and we need some of that Bennett blood you're harbouring to do the damn spell. Listen: we go in, we grab my mom, she flips Stefan's switch, he triggers Caroline, emotional dominoes, and hey! Everybody wins," Damon implored and stared back at me, wide-eyed, almost desperate.

"If I give you my blood, will you just get out of my face?" I asked him.

"Probably, although I think you're gonna want to join us," Damon determined, devilishly, "stick with me, Rosie Glow. I might just have the answer to all your prayers."

* * *

 **Books & Beans Coffee House - Whitmore Campus**

I was summoned to the coffee shop and reluctantly sat down at a table opposite Kai, who seemed thrilled by the mere fact that I was actually talking to him.

"You want the 1903 Ascendant?" Kai reiterated and quipped, "well, _sure_. Let me just reach inside my pocket and pull it out."

"If you're sincerely looking for a way to make up for the Hell that you put me through? This is it," I shot back, plainly.

"Okay. The problem is the Gemini kept the existence of the 1903 prison world a secret for generations, so to find the key to that particular jail cell, I'd have to navigate ancient texts, undo layers of magical cloaking spells, and...oh...wait," Kai rambled and then plucked the Ascendant out of his inside jacket pocket. He grinned, stupidly, and remarked, "oh, that's weird. Ha-ha! It was in my pocket. When Damon told me about Mama Salvatore, I started looking-"

I reached over to the Ascendant but Kai snapped his hand away.

"-and if I wanted to, I could get her out. Newly minted leader of the Gemini Coven and all, I don't even need a celestial event to zap us there," Kai boasted and then set the Ascendant down on the table.

"Okay. So, what's the catch?" I asked him, flatly.

"I'll go, if you go," Kai insisted, "come on. It could be fun, you know, 1903, the Gilded Age. Didn't you ever dream about time travel?"

"I would rather die of cholera than spend an afternoon with you," I informed him.

"You're way more likely to die at the hands of your gal-pal Caroline. I bet it will be over something stupid, like, she stops doing laundry, and you make some snippy comment, and she snips off your tongue. I mean, if only there were some way to reunite her with her humanity..." Kai said, and sighed out patronizingly.

* * *

 **Prison World - The Woods - 1903**

I was better dressed for my second jaunt back to 1903; I wrapped myself up in a padded parka jacket and suggested that our travelling party do the same. I cut my palm with a large hunting knife that Damon had rustled up for me, ridiculed Kai for his severely outdated Crocodile Dundee reference, and dripped my blood onto the Ascendant. A couple of chants and a flash of white-light later, we were in the winter wonderland of November, 1903.

I insisted that Damon and Elena go on ahead, to track down Lily Salvatore, while Kai and I worked on a locator spell to track down the Ascendant here in 1903. Damon shot off without hesitation. Elena took a little more prodding, she didn't want to leave me alone with him. I assured her that I would be fine, as we watched Kai catch snowflakes on his tongue like a bemused toddler. He's allegedly good now, he's turned over a new leaf. Nothing to worry about.

"New leaf? You believe me," Kai asked me as soon as Elena was out of earshot.

"Hell no," I spat back at him, "but Damon and Elena need to meet his mom alone. So...shut up and let's find the Ascendant."

Kai pricked his index finger with my knife and dripped his blood onto the palm of my hand; the all-powerful Gemini Coven leader was an excellent source to draw from.

"You have really nice palms," Kai commented, oh so normally.

I gave him a confused look, and he just smiled back at me; it wasn't the menacing maniacal smile I was all too familiar with, it was spacey and...sort of sincere. I rolled my eyes and returned to the task at hand.

 _Phasmatos Tribum, Nas Ex Veras, Sequitas Sanguinem. Phasmatos Tribum, Nas Ex Veras, Sequitas Sanguinem._

"Do you know why I'm here?" Kai blurted out. I ignored him and continued chanting. Kai spoke louder, "-because my guilt keeps me up at night. I don't-I don't expect you to believe me. But I need you to give me one more chance."

I carried on chanting, much to Kai's chagrin. He became so frustrated at my ignorance that he roughly grabbed my wrist, cutting off the spell and shook me harshly.

"Rosie! LISTEN TO ME!" he bellowed.

I grimaced in pain and looked up at him, fearful and angry, but not surprised in the least by this reaction. Kai looked as though he couldn't believe what he had just done and he quickly released me from his grasp.

"Sorry, I-oh my God, I didn't-I didn't mean to do that-" he muttered out, sheepishly.

"-but you did it anyway. Because even if you are telling the truth, the old you is still inside of you," I scorned back, and stared him down, "the Ascendant is this way."

I led Kai further and further into the woods.

"The spell feels stronger," I informed him, "the Ascendant must be around here somewhere."

"Why would the Ascendant be here?" Kai asked.

"I don't know, I didn't put it here," I grumbled back.

"If you don't think I'm capable of change, why spend an entire day with me? Why bring me out into the middle of nowhere?" Kai asked me, plainly. I stopped in my tracks, and Kai determined, "I could gut you all over again. Your friends would never even hear you scream."

In that moment, any shred of doubt disappeared; I was resolute. I sighed out and eventually turned to face him. I said, daintily, "because...maybe you're right about me. Maybe, deep down, despite everything, no matter how hard I try to fight it, there's a part of me that still believes there is a sliver of good in you."

Kai laughed and said, "and, you'd be right!" He continued to chuckle and sauntered past me with renewed vigor, soaking in every ounce of my bullshit. He narrated his every step, "looking, looking, and...nope, they didn't hide the Ascendant in a random pile of-"

Kai gasped suddenly as a hunting knife was rammed into his back. He fell into the snow, gasping in pain as he tried to clamber away from me, but I just grabbed him and stabbed him again in his hamstring.

"ROSIE!" Kai groaned as I slammed down onto him, straddling him, pinning him down. He looked truly terrified as he panted out, in agony, "what are you doing?!"

"Gaining your trust, and then stabbing you in the back?!" I shouted down at him, "feels pretty sucky, doesn't it?!"

"Please, don't," Kai pleaded.

"Don't what?! Don't-don't leave you here? All alone? Drive you to the point of wanting to end your own life?!" I screamed back at him, "I almost killed myself because of you!"

"Please, please, believe me! I've changed!" Kai begged.

I held the knife above him and I seethed, "I know. I know...so have I."

I slammed the knife down into absolutely nothing. I searched around the empty forest, breathing heavily; Kai had disappeared into thin air.

* * *

Damon was still quibbling with his mother but he insisted that Elena and I head out and start the spell anyway. I sliced my hand open once more, for what I promised myself was the final time, and chanted: _Sangiema meam et nos mundo carcerema. Sangiema meam et nos mundo carcerema._

Damon and Lily Salvatore came out of the house, hand-in-hand, and he instructed her to hold on to my arm just as he and Elena did.

Kai bellowed out my name. He stumbled out of the woods towards us, slowed down significantly by his injury. I saw him. I held on to that image, wanting to remember every single detail. He looked utterly distraught as I finished the spell and smirked back at him one final time.

* * *

 **Salvatore Boarding House - Kitchen - 2013**

Elena was on the counter with Damon's body between her legs; they were so consumed in their hook-up that they didn't even notice my arrival. Damon spotted me out of the corner of his eye eventually, cringing real hard.

"Oh hey, Ro-Ro," Damon said.

Elena finally realized that I was there and her cheeks flushed red with embarrassment.

"Sorry. Awkward timing," I said, awkwardly.

"No, no, no, no, it's fine," Elena said a lot and then cleared her throat to announce, "I, um, I actually have to go check in on Ric to see how things are going with Stefan and Caroline, so..."

Elena kissed Damon goodbye and left us alone to talk.

"This better be good," Damon grumbled.

"I just wanted to thank you for helping me find closure today," I told him, and we exchanged a knowing look with each other.

Damon was about to say something but he suddenly became very aware of Lily's presence in the house and turned on the faucet to drown out the sound of our voices. He pointed upstairs and whispered, "you know there's a crazy-lady up there who wants to open that prison world up more than anything, right?"

"We're never going back there, right?" I scorned back.

"No! We're not!" Damon insisted.

I turned off the faucet, and said, "good. Because I have something for you. A gift from 1994. I was gonna give it to you yesterday, but then you acted like an ass and you didn't deserve it."

Damon sighed out dramatically, and started, "well, I-"

His voice trailed off as I opened up my bag and pulled out a familiar-looking brown wooden box. He closed the gap between us, looking wholly shocked, and he uttered, "that's not what I think it is...is it?"

"If it wasn't for that map of Nova Scotia, I would have never remembered that there was magic on that island. There's a good chance that I wouldn't be here today," I told him, "so, from my '94 road trip, I got you a little something."

Damon hesitantly took the box from me and he opened it, revealing the mirror version of the cure that Elena had rammed down Katherine's throat in 2011. Damon held in his hands another unprecedented do-over.

"The cure. The cure to vampirism," Damon uttered, and he closed the box, thoughtfully, "why are you giving me this?"

"Because I have complete faith that we'll get Caroline and Stefan back to normal the old-fashioned way. Because I'm pretty sure everyone else I know is surprisingly content being vampires. But mostly, because I figured that you would want to be the one to give it to Elena," I said.

"What if I don't want to...now?" Damon asked me, honestly.

"We're not supposed to have this. We weren't supposed to go to Hell. You can give it to her, or not. I really don't have any of the answers, to anything, so...it's up to you, Damon," I told him, and smiled as I assured him, "I'm gonna head out of town for a few days, so you won't have my beady little judgy eyes on you while you decide."

"Your eyes are huge, kid," Damon replied, "like an owl, or a bug-"

I punched him in the arm, and he pulled me into a hug.


	79. The New Me

I called Jeremy at the airport. My heart skipped a little, and then sunk immediately at the sound of his voicemail greeting me, "hey, it's Jeremy. Leave a message."

"Hey, Jeremy, it's Rosie. It's a really long story, but I'm back," I told him, "uh, I had this whole plan to fly out to New Mexico and surprise you...but I heard that you and Bonnie are finally good again, and you should be, and I didn't want to stir anything up. Um...listen, Jer. I'm not sure I'm still the same sister that you remember. That place changed me, and I don't know if I'm scared of myself or actually kind of like the new me. If it's okay with you, I think I'm gonna figure me out, and then I promise to come visit you. I wanna see this new place, and this new school. Okay? I hope you're well, and...I love you. Okay. Bye, Jer."

I put my phone away and wandered up to the ticket booth but before I could get there, my phone started to jingle again. It wasn't who I wanted it to be.

"Hello, my second favourite Gilbert!" Damon greeted me.

"Hurry up, Damon, I'm about to get on a plane," I told him.

"I thought that I might give my good friend a quick call, just to check in," Damon declared, as though he were reading it off a card.

"Uh-huh. You know, Elena just texted me, actually, she told me that you guys found Caroline, which is great, and funnily enough, she didn't mention anything about a cure for vampirism?" I informed him, speaking in a more hushed tone towards the end.

"Please don't tell me you said anything," Damon shot back, sounding awfully worried.

"I didn't. Apparently, neither have you," I scorned back. I had given him enough space to make the right decision, but clearly _that_ had not happened.

"Well, yeah. Look. I've been busy, you know? My mom's in town. I had to vampire-proof a B and B. Do you have any idea how many people I had to compel to make that happen?" Damon chuckled away tangentially.

"Quite a few, I am assuming...which makes me wonder how you had the time to give your bud a call. Hmm?" I asked.

"You ever hear of April Lyrids?" Damon asked, and without missing a beat he added, "yeah, me neither. Anyway, it's a stupid comet that my mom thinks she's gonna use to pull her friends out of the 1903 prison world."

"Okay, but we're not letting her people out," I reminded him, shortly.

"Yes, that _is_ what we agreed," Damon reiterated.

" _Damon_ , you were the one that said her friends are vampires who can do magic," I scorned.

"I think the PC term is 'witchpire'," Damon quipped.

"The term is 'freaks we've never dealt with before'," I hissed back.

"That's by-the-by, anyway, I wanted to placate her for the time being by handing over the Ascendant and it turns out that it has...gone walkabout," Damon said.

"I know," I told him, bluntly.

"You know?" Damon asked.

"Yes," I replied.

"You have it?" He asked.

"Do you really think that I would leave the key to Kai's prison cell just laying around unprotected?" I rattled back.

"Okay, see... _that_ is an issue as now the two components that she needs to open up the door to 1903, namely you and the Ascendant, are in the exact same place," Damon informed me.

"They are not. And you don't have to tell her any of that," I shot back.

"Rosie. I know how much you love playing games-" Damon sang, annoyingly.

"Promise me that you will not point her in _my_ direction," I pleaded with him.

"No!" Damon whined, "of course not. I will stall her...somehow. Look, Lily's like a bill collector. You dodge her calls long enough, she'll leave you alone."

"No, eventually they shut your power off!" I scorned back at him, "you better fix this before she becomes _my_ problem. And don't ever call me up pretending to care about me again!"

I hung up, and chucked my phone into my bag. I looked up at the departures board and stared at flight 157...non-stop to New Orleans, to Hayley, to her child, to...Elijah.

He loved me, completely, always and forever. I thought about Elijah so much; so much so that he would have heard me by now, were we still connected. But I wasn't the Phoenix anymore; I wasn't entirely sure _what_ I was anymore. I had a power that was never mine. I was someone who gave third-degree burns to handsy ravers, and condemned those who had wronged me like for like, stabbing them, sentencing them to maddening isolation. I couldn't control my anger, my anger shattered glass and torched my surroundings; and I didn't feel bad. I felt lost and confused, but never bad. If I thought about it too much, it felt...good.

I always thought about the moment that I would see Elijah again, my mind would always wander back to that beautiful daydream, a little different every time, but as I stared blankly up at that departure board, I realised that it was the idea of Rosanna reuniting with Elijah that had kept me going, kept me sane, kept me hoping all this time; and that girl...she was gone.

And then I thought about Lily coming across the hidden Ascendant. I thought about her finding a way to get back to 1903, to undo all that I had laid to rest, and I retracted back into what was now familiar for me. I picked up my bag and I left.

* * *

 **Whitmore College - Elena, Caroline and Bonnie's Dorm Room**

I was sat surrounded by a circle of white candles; the Ascendant was in the middle surrounded by a thick layer of salt. _Incendia._ The candles ignited and crackled around me; the glow of their warmth welcomed me. _Phesmatos de strutos avox addellum._ I sensed Damon behind me and sighed out in frustration; this was going to have to wait.

"Hey! You're back!" Damon exclaimed, and I could almost hear his face fall as he took in my set up.

"Do not take another step," I scorned.

"You don't know what you're doing, Rosie," Damon insisted and he slowly took a step towards me.

I snapped around, and assured him, "I know exactly what I'm doing. I'm protecting myself. For the first time, I'm putting me first."

"Look. I'm all about girl power, okay, but just give me the damn Ascendant, and I promise you, Kai will not get out," Damon insisted.

"Oh. You _promise_ me? Is that supposed to mean something? This isn't about Kai anymore. The people that this would free are a million times stronger than him _and_ us, and don't get me started on the fun they would have with a newly-human Elena," I shot back, rising to my feet and getting all up in his face.

"My mom has the cure, Rosie," Damon sighed, and I froze like I'd been slapped.

"What are you talking about?" I asked, hesitantly.

"If I don't bring her _that_ , she's gonna destroy it," Damon determined.

"So, your own mother is leveraging you? Guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree," I spat back and started up chanting again, exactly where I'd left off, " _phesmatos de strutos avox addellum_."

The circle of salt surrounding the Ascendant caught fire.

"Stop!" Damon bellowed out.

He flashed into me, yanking me back into a choke hold, but I hit right back with my magic to throw him off me. We both gasped for breath and exchanged somewhat of a sheepish look at each other. I called a time out on the flames, and I yanked up the Ascendant and got back up in his face.

"If I hand this over to you, I am sacrificing myself. _Again_. I'm risking my life, _again_. I could end up dead, _again!_ " I hollered up at him, and then huffed out, vulnerably, "I am trying to come back to life here, Damon."

"You don't want to push me, Ro-Ro," Damon scorned back.

"What do you want?" I asked him, exasperated, "for Elena to have a human life, to be happy, to grow old _without_ you? If that's what you really wanted, you would have given her the cure by now. Am I wrong?"

Damon remained silent, but stared back at me with that knowing look; of course, I was right.

"I said, am I wrong?" I asked him again, aggravated by his submission from our argument, "I know you, Damon. I spent months with you, day in and day out. We went to Hell and back again, _literally_ , and you're more scared now than I have ever seen you before. It's not about what happens if you _don't_ give Elena the cure. You're scared about what happens if you _do_."

I held out the Ascendant, offering it over to him, and I said, "if you think that you can handle it, free a bunch of people who will want to kill me and anyone else who tries to stand in their way, then you can spend the next 70 years watching Elena grow old and die. If that's what you want, take it."

Damon stared at the Ascendant, visibly pissed off, but also motionless. After a long moment, he walked away, empty-handed. I turned my attention back to my spell, and destroying Kai's last chance of escape.


	80. I'm Glad I Took That Leap

**Whitmore Medical Center - Hallway**

 _Hey, I'm guessing by your message that you didn't get any of the voicemails I left you last year, or maybe you just didn't listen to them. That's fine. I probably said a lot of stuff I'm not proud of. I can't remember. I was wasted for a lot of them. I'm sorry that you were in Hell. But, I was too. My twin sister gave her mind-wiping ex-boyfriend her last goodbye. I got one through the grapevine. My girlfriend was ready to sacrifice herself and wasn't going to tell me. My sister dying in her place forced her hand. See, I lost a year, too, Ro. I lost my first and forever best friend, half of my heart, and I really want to be that well-adjusted dude that's gonna act like nothing happened, like we're one normal happy family, like I wasn't sitting right by your side on that garage floor watching you kill yourself, but that...that's gonna take some time. Okay? I'm different now, too. I love you. Just...give me some time, yeah?_

I stared at my phone for what felt like a solid minute, and then I deleted the voicemail, certain that I wasn't going to need it for posterity; I would remember every single word.

"Hey, you ready?" Elena giggled and hid behind the corner with me.

"Yeah," I uttered, quietly, and cleared my throat, stuffing my phone into my back pocket, "where are we at?"

"Okay, Officer Hottie is taking her into that exam room right there! They'll be here any minute," Elena squealed, and flapped her arms around excitedly. She jerked and shuffled back into me as they suddenly appeared, "eep! There! There they are."

"What is this about?" Jo asked the officer.

"I'm here regarding Professor Saltzman. I understand you two are engaged to be married?" Officer Baker asked her.

"Yes. Is-is something wrong?" Jo asked him, sounding rightly concerned.

"Nope!" Officer Baker declared, jovially, "everything is just right!"

Disco lights started flashing around the room, and then Kool and the Gang took it away: o _h, yes, it's Ladies' Night and the feeling's right! Oh, yes, it's Ladies' Night, oh, what a night!_ We peered through the window like little meerkats and saw Officer Baker rip open his shirt and start gyrating his hips.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Wow!" Jo hollered out, wholly confused and alarmed.

The officer stripped down to his bright red panties and continued to dance around Jo, provocatively. Elena and I composed ourselves with great difficulty and then burst into the room.

"SURPRISE!" Elena and I screamed out.

"Oh! Oh, my God. No. No! I don't think so!" Jo protested but ultimately burst out laughing, "no, no, no, this can't be happening!"

Elena and I performed with our new highly-flexible friend, Officer Baker, dancing around him, throwing penis-shaped confetti, adding to the glamour of the performance. We sat Jo down on a chair and put a bachelorette tiara on her and threw strings of Mardi Gras beads around her neck. After a really short moment, Jo started to get into it, and danced along in her seat while the stripper gave her a very enthusiastic lap dance.

"Happy bachelorette!" Elena hollered and threw some more confetti in the air, "wooooo!"

"Happy bachelorette!" I chimed in, and offered my hand to Jo, "hi, I'm Rosanna! Lovely to meet you."

* * *

 **Ed's Diner - Mystic Falls**

Elena and I moved the party on to our next destination: our favourite diner, which was now completely empty, and serving only us, thanks to Elena's supernatural words of persuasion. Jo agreed the idea was actual heaven. She sighed in pleasure as she bit into her double bacon cheese burger, and declared, "you're geniuses."

"But...aren't you a vegetarian?" I laughed.

"Ro, don't ruin it!" Elena giggled.

"I'm just saying, that's not _exactly_ a Garden burger," I scoffed.

"The baby is not okay with the no-meat thing. Besides, it's _my_ party, and I'll eat what I want to!" Jo determined and took a huge gulp of her milkshake, "I do wish this was vodka, though."

"Right?" Elena laughed.

"Hey, I don't want to know what Ric's doing, do I?" Jo asked us, abruptly.

"Probably at the...movies..." I muttered, awkwardly.

"Yeah, or mini-golf...?" Elena added.

We both started giggling hysterically, knowing that Jo wasn't going to believe any of our lies.

"Uh-huh," Jo hummed, skeptically, and then disappeared to get even more ketchup.

I scooted over into Jo's seat so that I could quickly talk to Elena in semi-privacy.

"So, are we gonna talk about it?" I asked her.

"Talk about what?" Elena asked, with a furrowed brow.

"Seriously? You're gonna make your sister pry it out of you? I know about the cure, Elena," I shot back.

"You do?" Elena huffed out, and then lowered her voice to a whisper, "how is it even possible?"

"Damon called me last night and he told me everything, including his insane plan to take it with you," I whispered back, harshly.

"Damon called you?" Elena questioned.

"He needed someone to talk to after you left the conversation without telling him what you were thinking!" I told her.

"That's not exactly how it happened..." Elena shot back, exasperated.

"And I quote, she stared at me like I was an alien, and then basically teleported out of the room," I relayed.

"Damon Salvatore stands in front of you and tells you that he wants to become a human again. Wouldn't you freak out? I just...I needed some time to process," Elena explained, unknowingly triggering a latent pain from a certain voicemail.

"What is it with Gilberts and their need to over-think everything?!" I muttered under my breath.

"It's _kind of_ a big deal," she replied, not picking up on my misdirected grumblings, "twenty-four hours ago, I didn't even think it was possible to become a human again."

"But you _want_ to be human again," I reminded her.

"Yeah!" She said, unconvincingly, so I gave her a look. She tried again, "well, _I did_. Honestly, it's all just very complicated right now."

Jo returned to the table with several cups of ketchup in her hand and looked very concerned as she asked us, "you guys aren't full, are you?"

"No, we're not full of carbs yet, Jo," I told her, plainly, "just full of crap."

Elena glared at me and scorned back, sarcastically, "oh, because _that's_ fair."

"Context, ladies. Please?" Jo requested, patiently.

"I brought back the only known cure to vampirism, and Elena was second-guessing taking it because her love for Damon is _that strong_ or whatever, so he pipes up with plan B: he's going to take the cure with her and live happily ever after," I informed Jo, "-and then Elena had a brain fart and left the room and didn't say anything."

"So, basically, Damon did the vampire-version of a wedding proposal, and you just walked away?" Jo asked Elena.

"I didn't say nothing, I said that I would think about it," Elena clarified, "and why are we talking about me? This is _your_ party."

"Trust me, I would much rather talk about that than the fact that I have yet to find a non-hideous wedding gown. Or, that I can't ask my sister to be my maid of honor because she won't return my phone calls. Or, the fact that I cannot stop eating-literally, like ever. So, big decision. Go," Jo encouraged.

"Well, if you care, dear sister, I think you should take it. Decision made," I chimed in.

"What if I miss the perks, like compelling the owner of a diner to close early for us? Or what if I get sick?" Elena posed.

"Or...what if the human-you doesn't love Damon anymore?" I interrupted her. Elena gave me a pointed look; Jo gave me a confused one. I shrugged back and said, "someone had to say it!"

"That's ridiculous," Jo declared, "being supernatural doesn't change who you are! I should know-I'm an ex-witch who's about to marry an ex-vampire. Deep down, you know who you are and what you want. Love's always gonna require a huge leap of faith. A big, scary leap over a hot pit of lava. And, you might end up heartbroken, but you might be the happiest person on the face of the Earth. Personally? I'm glad I took that leap."

Jo was speaking to Elena, reassuring her, but in truth, I needed to hear her words too: you know who you are, and what you want; everything else is just details. The words weren't even new. The old me echoed in my mind: _I'm not willing to give up on something that brings me joy just because it might go wrong one day, or I might lost it. That is not living, and I know loss, Elijah._ She sounded so sure. Brave. Naive. She leaped.

Our conversation was interrupted by Elena's phone jingling. She scoffed, "speak of the devil," and left the diner to speak to Damon in private.

"So, who's the boy?" Jo asked me, abruptly, and continued dunking her fries into her vat of ketchup.

"Excuse me?" I asked her, lightly.

"You don't get all jaded and mopey like that, second-hand," Jo determined, "so, I'm feeling lucky, I'm going two-for-two. Who's the boy?"

"There isn't a boy. My brother is mad at me," I told her, vaguely.

"Why?" Jo asked me, "didn't you kind-of-die? I would think that warrants a pass on whatever he's pissed at."

"Well, before I kind-of-died, I used what I thought were my last seconds on this Earth to call Elijah, and I told him that I loved him, and I forgave him, and I wanted him to make sure that he knew that...before I kind-of-died," I said.

"So, there _is_ a boy," Jo said.

"He's not a boy," I laughed, "he's technically...a very old man."

"Oh, honey, no matter how old they get, they will always be boys," Jo determined, "and he sounds like a very important one, if he gets the death bed phone call. I'm guessing that your brother is ignorant to that fact, or he is choosing to be. You know, I pumped Jeremy's stomach once or twice while you were away, and this Elijah, he never came up in a positive light. We had a few teary drunken conversations together which I probably shouldn't be telling you...doctor-patient confidentiality and all...but I did the procedure off the books, at Alaric's request...so it's a grey area I guess...and what the hell. Jeremy is not mad about not getting the goodbye. He's mad at himself for not being able to help you, at not having the power, or the knowledge, or the time to save you. He's a kid who has been through more than his fair share of loss, who is mad at the world. He volunteered to go and sit at your side so that you wouldn't be alone when you died, and that was a self-served torturing punishment more than some sense of sibling duty to you."

I stared back at Jo, wide-eyed and bewildered.

"Give him some time. Jeremy loves you. So much. But, you already know that," Jo said, "and you need to forgive yourself for staring into the barrel of the gun and choosing to be a bad-ass and taking a giant leap over a hot pit of lava."

"I'm really glad that Ric found you," was all that I could say, but I truly meant it. He deserved someone like Jo.

"Me too," Jo said.

"I'm gonna take a wild guess that Damon has hijacked Elena," I determined, "so, do you want to take this party somewhere else?"

"Yes, to my bed, if I can walk," Jo laughed.

We packed up to-go bags, of course, and we were just about to leave when suddenly the bell jingled at the front door and Lily Salvatore walked inside the diner. I froze at the sight of her, knowing perfectly well this was not a social call, this was the debt collector here to settle the score. Jo picked up on my instant shift in body language.

"Oh, my God," I huffed out.

"Good evening, Miss Gilbert," Lily greeted me, coolly, "I was out for a walk, and I saw you through the window, and I thought, I know her. That young lady ruined my life."

"Who is this?" Jo uttered under her breath, alarmed by the woman's piercing blue eyes, devoid of anything resembling warmth.

"Lily Salvatore," I explained and muttered quieter, "be careful-"

"Rosanna destroyed something very dear to me, and now all I feel is insatiable hunger," Lily declared.

"I didn't do it to spite you, Lily. I did it to keep Kai trapped," I informed her, plainly.

"Surely there's another way to rescue my friends?" Lily asked, in earnest.

"There is no other way," I told her, sternly, "and, even if I could help, I wouldn't."

Lily became so visibly upset; her body shook; her lower lip trembled. I braced myself. She lunged at me, and I quickly incapacitated her with a pain infliction spell. She groaned and snatched at her scalp, stunned and confused.

"Now, let it go, and get out," I seethed and cut off the spell sharply, giving her a chance to collect herself and leave us alone.

Lily looked shocked for one single moment before yanking up a knife from the booth and launching it my way. The blade embedded itself in my neck. I tumbled down to the floor and gasped desperately as blood oozed down my neck.

"Your mistake," Lily hissed at me, and flashed into Jo, slamming her back against the wall.

"No, please! I'm pregnant!" Jo screamed out, just as Lily was about to clamp down on her neck and feed.

Lily froze. She pulled back slightly and focused her hearing to confirm Jo's screaming plea, and then she looked suddenly disgusted at what she was about to do.

"Twins," Lily said.

"What?" Jo huffed out, utterly stunned.

Lily looked overwhelmed at the bloody scene and she whispered, "good luck to you," and flashed out of the diner before she could hurt Jo. Jo took a split-second to catch her breath before rushing over to my side to examine the wound. I was still gasping desperately; I was terrified.

"Stay calm. I'm gonna help you," Jo implored. She propped me up against her legs and stabilized the knife that was stuck in my neck. And then she made a calculated decision, and yanked it out. She insisted, "it's okay. It's okay. Usually, we don't yank out penetrating objects in the field, but don't worry. Here. Squeeze my hand if you have trouble breathing." I just looked up at her with wide eyes, and Jo sighed reassuringly, "no squeeze? Good. That's really good. Come on. Up. Up." She helped me sit up, and I started wheezing, but Jo cut me off, hurriedly, "no, no. Don't. Don't try and talk. I heard what she said. Twins. Which means I'm number one on Kai's Most Wanted list. Congratulations, you have been bumped to number two. So, thank you for destroying that stupid Ascendant. And, I hope you meant what you said, that there's no way to get out of that prison world."

"I promise. He's not getting out," I rasped out, painfully.

"Worst bachelorette party ever, right?" Jo scoffed, "let's get to the hospital, okay?"

* * *

 **Mystic Falls Memorial Hospital**

"Hey," Alaric greeted me as he came into my room, and again when I finally flopped my head over and spied him, "hey."

I gave him a massive smile and I told him, groggily, "I really like your lady friend. She's really cool."

"Yeah, I like her too," Alaric told me, but his face wasn't light at all.

"What's that face for?" I asked him, and wiggled a finger around.

"A lot of stuff. You scared me," he said.

"I'm fine. Jo saved me. She says she gave me the good stuffs," I rambled, "and Damon's coming for some blood. But maybe...no, for me, not him. I hope not for him, because, I don't have a lot left. It's all on the floor."

Alaric quickly glanced down at the squeaky clean hospital floor, and assumed I was waffling on about the diner still. He scoffed at me, "it's for you, kid. It's definitely for you."

"Why are you sad?" I asked him.

Alaric sat on the edge of my hospital bed and he told me, "even if Kai never escapes that prison world, Jo's family is gonna try and take our kids from us. A new Gemini twin Merge is the only thing that can strip Kai of his power. I won't let that happen. After the wedding, we're gonna disappear. We're gonna go somewhere her family can't find us."

"That...that makes sense," I told him, really focusing on his words and not the dancing shapes behind his head.

"Remember when I said that taking care of you guys was the closest I ever came to the life I always wanted? Because of _you_ , Rosanna, because of what you did, I get to have that life; a beautiful wife that's so out of my league, kids of my own. I get my chance. And I don't ever want you to think that I'm leaving _you_. I watched over you, and Jeremy, and Elena from the Other Side and I am always here for you, okay?" Alaric assured me.

"Jo's your family, and that family's gonna like...double in size. So, okay, I get it. You wouldn't be you if you were doing something else," I said.

"You guys _are_ , and always will be, my family, too," Alaric said.


	81. I'm Just Being Paranoid

**Salvatore Boarding House - Wedding HQ**

 _Do the garment steamer thingy, get the crumples out of Jo's dress_ , that's what Elena said, so that's what I did. She'd also insisted that I get my head in the game, but my head was firmly stuck in the nightmare she'd woken me up from this morning; it wasn't the first and the pit in my stomach assured me it wasn't going to be the last. Before I could sink back into it, Jo stole both our immediate attention, bulldozing her way into the room, tossing around cushions and bags, in desperate search for something, grumbling, "crap, they're not here!"

"What's wrong?" Elena asked, dutifully filling the empty champagne glasses to the brim.

"My shoes!" Jo exclaimed, in anguish, "my gorgeous, ridiculously expensive, wear-them-once-and-then-never-again shoes! They are missing!"

"Do you want me to do a locator spell?" I asked her, absentmindedly, as I fiddled about with the garment steamer settings.

"On...my shoes?" Jo asked, confused, "is that possible?"

"I don't know, actually. Just hang on, I got to figure out how to work this stupid thing," I grumbled as I helplessly struggled to turn the damn thing on, and accidentally pulled the hose out.

Jo looked insanely alarmed and frustrated as she sighed out, sarcastically, "oh, good, break it! Because my wrinkled dress will surely distract everyone from my bare feet!"

Elena attempted to calm Jo down and offered her a glass, "hey, hey. Come on. Don't waste all your panic now! You still have eight hours until the ceremony. Non-alcoholic mimosa?"

"One, a non-alcoholic mimosa is just an orange juice. And two, I can't drink. But somebody should drink. _You_ should drink," Jo insisted, feverishly.

"I _will_ drink, eventually, but...I have human tolerance now, which is cheaper but a lot less fun. Cheers," Elena determined and clinked her glass of orange juice against Jo's.

Jo's cell phone started to jingle, and Elena lunged for it first, insisting to the bride, "relax! OI! I said, relax! Hello, this is Jo's phone. Uh. Oh...huh. Oh...okay."

"That's not an "okay" okay. That's a "there's a problem" okay," Jo ranted.

"Yeah, we'll uh...call you back. Okay. Bye," Elena hung up the phone and awkwardly hesitated before informing Jo, "so...Danielle's got the flu."

"Huh," Jo said, and smiled tightly, "it sounded like you just said Danielle has the flu, which is impossible, because Danielle is my wedding coordinator."

"Yeah," Elena said, with an awkward grimace.

"Well, how sick is she?" Jo asked, frantically, "can she still work?"

Elena thought for a moment, and then shrugged and said, "...depends on how much vomit you want to have at the wedding."

Jo had to walk away from the conversation and started pacing around the room. Elena and I exchanged defeated looks with each other, waiting for the other one to pipe up with a single brilliantly bright idea to save the day. We waited some more, stupefied by our lack of ideas and just stared more intensely at each other.

"To be honest, I think maybe this is a good thing!" Caroline determined as she bounced into the room, "because no matter how good Danielle was, I am pretty sure I'm better."

Elena smiled and rushed over to hug her best friend, beaming, "Caroline! I missed you!"

"I missed me, too," Caroline said into her embrace, "thank you for getting me back."

Elena nodded happily and Caroline turned her attention to me, and we got a proper reunion in place of her indifference the first time around.

"Hi!" She said, emotionally and embraced me tightly. We both had tears in our eyes, and after a moment, Caroline composed herself and engaged control freak mode, "okay, now, we've got a lot to do and not a lot time to do it. Elena, just have a drink, you're not going to pass out. Rosie, the switch is on the left-hand side on the back. And Jo, I can see your shoes under the couch. Now, who's dealing with the boys?"

* * *

Someone knocked at the front door, but the buzzing about was clearly too intense for anyone else to hear it. I answered the door and found Enzo on the front step, smiling back at me. I was about to respond in kind, but then I remembered exactly where his allegiances lied. I tried to close the door in his face. He slammed his hand against it, keeping it open.

"Relax, relax. I'm not here to cause mischief," Enzo assured me.

"Said everyone who ever causes mischief," I shot back.

Enzo scoffed, lightly, and he explained, "I told Lily I'd visit."

"Is this like some Oedipus thing?" I asked him, snottily, "alright, you know what? Doesn't matter."

I once again tried to close the door, but Enzo was faster and stopped me from doing so.

"Excuse me, little witch," he scowled.

"If you think I'm gonna let _you_ , a ruiner, in here to see _another_ ruiner on the day of Jo's wedding, you got another thing coming," I assured him tersely.

"Ruiner?" Enzo scoffed back at me, "well, I've been called much worse. I'll take it. Look, she's lonely, and hungry."

He held up his hand; he was holding an iPod with earbuds wrapped around it.

"-and she can't eat that," I muttered back.

"I'm not trying to feed her. I'm trying to keep her sane," Enzo snapped back and tossed the iPod into my hands. He explained, " _that_ is filled with loads of songs from the last era she knew. I thought it might bring her comfort. If you're not a complete monster, I trust you'll pass it on."

Enzo walked away, leaving me briefly conflicted about what to do; giving the crazy neck-stabbing lady her old-timey jams was definitely at the bottom of the list, the top was still tossing it back at Enzo's head, but I also considered trying to melt it in my hands, or maybe selling it on eBay...

Suddenly, Enzo stopped, just as I was about to close the door, and he called back to me, "you're not a monster."

I stopped closing the door, and I stared back at him, and I heard him out.

He continued, "you're the opposite. I never thanked you for your part in stopping us all from getting completely obliterated, and I'm not ignorant to the fact that you went through a year of Hell so that we all got a second chance."

"And…what exactly are you doing with it? Looks real same-y to me," I said, before finally closing the door on him.

* * *

 **Salvatore Boarding House - Parlor**

Elena was using her deepest-coverage makeup to conceal the bruises on my neck from where Lily had just tried to choke me to death. I'd wandered down into the basement, for some unknown, stupidly stupid reason, but stopped when I heard Lily babbling away to herself, "I want my family back. That's all I've ever wanted, to have my family back, with me, where they belong."

I approached the door of the cellar to check on her and looked in through the bars; I couldn't see her. I turned to walk away, and Lily chose that moment to make her appearance; she'd been hiding right up against the wall, out of direct sight. She grabbed me by the throat and strangled me, but I scorched her hands and managed to escape out of her manic hold. We stared each other down in shared anger and hatred.

"She was rambling on about her family, and then I got close to her, and she attacked me, like an animal!" I recounted to my sister, "she was freaking luring me in!"

Elena sighed, and determined, "sounds like she's reached the full-blown crazy stage of drying out."

"You're saying this is all because she's drying out?" I asked her, sharply.

"It's hard for me to explain how awful it is but...yeah. Your mind starts playing tricks on you. You start seeing things, and people," Elena explained, somewhat.

"What happens when the crazy stage is over?" I asked her.

"Well, Stefan said that he has a plan, you know, to get her back on track," Elena said.

"Does that plan involve letting her out? Because if he thinks she's giving up on her family-" I groaned.

"She has to. Ro, you already destroyed the Ascendant. It's done," Elena reminded me.

"What if there's a loophole?" I asked her, "what if Kai isn't laying down in the tundra and accepting his fate? What if we are all beyond stupid in thinking that this is all over and neatly packaged away in 1903?"

Elena stared back at me, confused, and concerned by the look of dread on my face.

Jo suddenly walked in to the room and interrupted us, "I'm dreading it, but I guess I should think about putting the dress on."

We both stood up, awkwardly, and Jo made her way over to us, clearly worried by the emotions on our poorly disguised faces.

"Something's wrong. It's not the dress, is it? Please tell me it's not the dress," Jo pleaded, her eyes darting between the both of us.

"We were just discussing the fact that there's a desiccating vampire locked in a cell less than fifty feet from where we're getting ready," Elena offered as a semi-truthful explanation.

"Did she do something to the dress?" Jo asked, tersely, without missing a beat.

"The dress is fine. I'm just being paranoid," I assured her.

"Okay. Truck's here. Who's coming?" Matt asked, suddenly appearing through the front door. We all looked back at him in utter confusion, so Matt elaborated, "Caroline suggested in a semi-threatening way that I pick up the centerpieces, which sounds like a Donovan screw-up waiting to happen."

I volunteered to assist him, and we all disappeared to complete our wedding chores.

* * *

 **Blooms Flower Shop**

I asked Matt to fill in for Stefan's crazy barometer on the drive over to the florist and just hear me out. He obliged, and I told him all about the nightmares I'd been having, specifically, the one this morning, "I wake up in the dorm room, and someone's standing over me. Then they're gone. No one's there. And I'm suitably creeped out, so I go over to the fire, and grab the poker, just in case, and lo and behold, Lily Salvatore is stood right behind me, and she's all ' _oh, hello again, Rosanna_ ', and I'm all ' _Lily, I thought Stefan locked you in a cellar_ ', and she's all ' _yes, he did, but prisons are easily escaped, you should know that, Rosanna_ ', and I'm all ' _okay. Creepy. What do you want?_ ', and then she's all-"

"Ro-without the voices, maybe?" Matt requested.

"Sorry, she was there to kill me. My magic fails. I stab her with the poker and bolt. Straight into... _Kai_ ," I told him, dramatically.

"Go on."

"And he's all 'wow, you are _not_ good at running!', and then I try to zap him. And he chuckles 'hahaha, I was spooning you earlier, and siphoned all your magic away in your sleep!' and I'm all 'ew', and then just as Lily pops back in the scene and tries to rip me to shreds, Elena rips my blanket off and wakes me up, and starts singing 'it's Wedding Daaaay!'"

Matt already looked a lot more bothered about a dream than Elena looked about Lily attacking me. I understood that she had a unique experience with the physical hell that Lily was going through, but I couldn't help but feel as though she was skipping over the rest of it, and Matt's reaction was only confirming that. I told him about Lily attacking me in the cellar and he went quiet for a while. I came out of the store with the last of the flowers. Matt took them off me and finished loading his truck.

"She's attacked you twice now," Matt said.

"Elena says she's desiccating and that's why she's crazy, but-" I told him.

"Yeah, I don't think so," Matt scoffed, and cut me off to inform me, "she killed two people last week when she wasn't desiccating, and she stabbed you in the neck. What's her excuse for that, then?"

He grabbed a bag out of his truck and set it down on the ground in front of me. He opened the bag and revealed it was bursting with anti-vampire weapons, stakes, guns with wooden bullets, the lot.

"What's this?" I asked him.

"I think if _you_ have a hunch, I'm not prepared to ignore it," he determined.

"What do you think we should do?" I asked him.

"I know what we shouldn't do: leave her in the hands of two people we don't trust," he said.

* * *

 **Salvatore Boarding House - Cellar**

Matt and I snuck our way through the house down into the cellar; Matt was toting a cross-bow, and I was armed with a vervain-dart pistol. The core of our plan was to capture Lily and get her out of this house immediately.

"She's gonna kill us," I whispered to him.

"I thought the whole point of this is that we were in control of her," Matt shot back.

"Not Lily, Caroline. The wedding starts in an hour," I reminded him.

"All we have to do is knock her ass out and drag her to the boiler room. Thirty minutes, tops," Matt assured me.

However, his assurance turned almost instantly into panic and he stopped us dead in our tracks, his arm stretched out to hold me back. He gestured ahead to the cell door that was now swung wide open. I lead the frustrated charge inside the cell, and looked all around. It was completely empty.

"Enzo must have let her out," I scorned and pulled out my phone, "god, I'm such an idiot! _Here's some turn-of-the-century slow-jams to get her to sleep!_ Idiot! I have to warn everyone."

Suddenly, Matt started to gasp for breath behind me, as though someone were choking him, but there was no one else was around.

"Matt? Matt, what's wrong?!" I cried out and rushed over to him.

"I can't breathe. It's like someone is crushing my throat," Matt gasped.

He desperately clawed at his throat to try to relieve the pressure, and fell down to the ground, weakly; I couldn't hold him up.

"Okay, just hang on, I'll..." I huffed out, until the exact same thing started happening to me too. I fell down to my knees as the room around me closed in, and everything went black.

* * *

I awoke to the feeling of a hand patting my face. Matt had woken up first on the dusty floor of the basement cell, and saw that I was lying next to him, still unconscious. He'd shuffled across the floor and crawled his way over to me, rasping out my name, groggily. I opened my eyes, begrudgingly, very slowly, weakened from blood loss. My wrists had been cut, I was lying in a pool of my own blood, but my attacker had taken the time to wrap duct-tape crudely around my wrists, saving me from bleeding to death.

"Hey," Matt whispered, and brought my gaze back to him, "you with me? You okay?"

It took me a moment to summon the strength to speak.

"It was...Kai," I rasped.


	82. It's My Turn

**Salvatore Boarding House - Kitchen**

Matt bandaged up my slit wrists with a great deal more care than Kai had afforded, and we waited for someone from the wedding party to return our frantic texts and calls. I munched my way through a packet of biscuits like a beaver on a deadline; my woozy mind couldn't conjure up a better metaphor, but it still managed to race away with all manner of worst case scenarios. Why was no one replying? WHY? Okay, a lot of them were in the actual wedding party, and were probably enjoying the nice beautiful tear-jerking ceremony, but Stefan and Caroline were in the crowd. Bonnie and Jeremy too, if they made it on time. And Tyler! You can't all have your phone's on silent, no one has their phone on absolute silent, they should be buzzing away in your pockets! I mentally berated them, and brushed away the dusting of crumbs on my shirt, then I berated myself: like a layer of biscuit crumbs is going to ruin your blood-stained shirt, Rosanna.

I saw that Damon was finally calling me back and answered quickly.

"Damon!" I cried out.

Damon sighed out in relief, and said, "Rosie Glow Gilbert. You have no idea how good it is to hear your voice right now."

"Damon, Kai's out," I told him, anxiously.

"I know. I'm glad you're safe. I was worried Kai already got to you," Damon said.

"He did. And I don't know how, but I'm still alive. He drained my blood and that's all," I told him.

"That's...not all," Damon told me, unhappily, "he was at the wedding. Jo's dead, he killed her."

My heart stopped, and then shattered into tiny pieces.

"Oh my god," I cried out, my mind stuck on Ric, on his plans, on his future.

"And Elena got knocked out, and she's not waking up!" Damon whined out, and snapped me back for another round of heartache, "the doctors keep telling me that there's nothing physically wrong with her. I don't know what to do, Ro."

"Stay there. Okay? I'm coming," I told him.

"I'll get my keys," Matt said, and set off instantly, "change your shirt. Be ready in two."

I glanced down quickly at my blood-soaked shirt, and hobbled away to do just that. Matt got about halfway down the hallway before his phone started ringing. My attention snapped from the cold wet shirt on my back, over to him, to whichever of our friends was finally checking in.

"Ty?" Matt answered, "Ty, what's wrong?"

I followed behind Matt, noticing the mounting fear in his voice, and put a delicate hand on his shoulder. He put the phone on speaker.

"I triggered my curse!" Tyler groaned out, in shame.

We heard what sounded like Tyler's bones breaking. My entire body bunched up at the piercing sounds, and I told myself to be super careful what I wished for in future. I didn't want any more calls. Matt looked over at me, in horror, and uttered out, "no."

"Tell every vampire to steer clear of me," Tyler begged his friend as he panted for breath, "I don't know if I'll be able to control who I go after, and my bite _will_ kill them!"

More of his bones snap painfully, and he screamed out in agony. The phone went dead. Matt texted everyone he could think of, and I sprinted away to change my damn clothes.

* * *

Matt walked back into the parlor, and found me stuck to the couch, motionless. He couldn't see the tears or the horrified expression on my face.

"Rosie, let's go. We got to get to the hospital," Matt implored.

I didn't move. I didn't say anything. I just sat there on the couch, numb, completely overwhelmed by something.

"What's wrong?" Matt asked me, with concern. He saw that I was holding an old video camera, and he asked, "what is that?"

I showed him the post-it note on the back of the camera, that said: "Watch me! :)" I composed myself and I told him that I had found it in the kitchen; I mentally amended my earlier lesson: don't wish for more phone calls, and don't go back for more biscuits. I handed the camera over to Matt, and he pressed the play button. Kai's face appeared on the screen, and he smirked back in satisfaction as he addressed the camera.

"All this time travel has been hard on the camera, Ro-Ro. Haha. OH! There it is!" Kai beamed, and he clapped his hands together gleefully, "yay! You saw the post-it. Proud of you!" He put on a robot voice and declared, "this message will self-destruct in ten seconds. Hahaha. Kidding. Anyhow, you're probably wondering why you're still alive, since I should have bled you out, one painful ounce at a time. I mean, that's what you deserved. You left me behind in 1903, which I did not appreciate, but I guess you forgot about that old Canadian rock filled with Bennett blood, huh? It existed then too! Anyway, even though I got out, praise be, now I kind of just want to make you suffer, in new and, if I may say so myself, totally inspired ways."

"What is this?" Matt asked, horrified.

"Keep watching," I told him, sadly.

"So, shall I just skip straight to the good part? I bet you can't contain yourself a minute longer! I can't. It's _that_ good! Okay, I'll just tell you. Here's the scoop, Rosie Pants, I linked Elena's life to yours. And the real kicker? As long as you're alive, Elena will remain fast asleep," Kai grinned like a giddy schoolboy and chuckled away.

"Oh, my god," Matt huffed out, in disbelief.

"It's sort of a play on the old classic, except one sloppy kiss from Damon won't wake Sleeping Beauty...only your death will. And oh, _please_ don't go looking for some weird witchy work-around," Kai warned me, "I know you, Rosie. I know you inside and out and I know that you know me. Okay? As the incredibly powerful Leader of the Gemini's, I rigged the game so that if you _do_ try to outsmart it, both you and Elena will die, instantly. And where's the fun in that? Right? I guess what I'm trying to say is: your betrayal really hurt me, Ro-Ro. So, this is kind of all your fault!"

Matt put the camera away and looked lost in both fear and concern. He eventually reached the only feasible conclusion in his mind, and insisted, "you have to get out of town now, Ro."

"I'm not letting Kai win!" I seethed.

"Ro, Elena's the only thing that Damon Salvatore cares about. He'll kill you. You have to get out of here now," Matt implored.

* * *

 **Jo and Alaric's Wedding Venue - Destroyed Barn**

The barn was horrifying; blood was thickly splattered everywhere; the windows were blown out; tables and chairs over turned, over people, all lifeless, their bodies ravaged. Kai wobbled his way through the room that was littered with dead Gemini Coven members, all of the family members that he had murdered in one fell swoop. He was under the influence of Tyler's werewolf venom.

"Hello?" Kai hollered out, "anyone still alive, hmm? Anyone alive just raise your hand. I need blood."

"You need more than blood," I informed him, and gestured to his gnarly werewolf bite, "maybe some ointment? 'Cause _gross_."

Kai laughed sarcastically for way too long, and asked me, tersely, "do your friends think you're funny? Because maybe if you were funny, if you were the one with the good jokes, who they can always count on to make them laugh, maybe they'd be cool with letting you live instead of Elena."

I shrugged and told him, simply, "you're right. Sadistic humour is your thing. I'm just the one that does magic."

I raised my hand, and hurtled a barrage of ear-shattering, incapacitating, searing noise his way. Kai staggered around and clutched his head in agony; blood ran down his neck, spilling from his ears, nose, and eyes.

"Undo the spell, Kai," I demanded and ramped up the intensity.

"I can't. What's done is done," Kai chuckled through the pain.

"Ossox!" I chanted and slammed a hand out before me. Kai's leg snapped in two, and he doubled over; hollering out in agony. I hit him again. Another one of Kai's bones broke in half, and he fell down onto the floor and in a hair-raising fit of giggles.

"I can't undo the spell, Rosie. My death made it permanent," Kai informed me, delightedly.

"Fine," I seethed back at him, and closed my palm, "I'll just wait for the werewolf bite to kill you."

"You know what's funny?" Kai chuckled, and held his hand over his festering bite, calmly, "I didn't even know werewolves were real until I got bit by one. Then I knew, then I _really_ knew, 'cause ouch! The thing is, Ro, the only way a guy turns into a wolf is if it's magic, right? So, technically, their venom's magic, too. So...I just went ahead and siphoned it up, and I feel great, really great. Much, much better. Motus."

He said it so simply, so effortlessly, so absent of the malice dripping from every word of mine. He thrust his hand forward, launching me backward into a wall with such force that I crumpled on the floor in a heap, and I didn't get back up.

* * *

Damon burst into the barn, alerted by Matt to my ill-advised kamikaze mission, and saw that I was collapsed on the floor. He immediately flashed over to me and knelt down by my side. I was gasping for my final breaths and clearly broken.

"Rosie," Damon said, so quietly, his face littered with hurt as he looked me over; as if I didn't know it already, yes, it was bad.

"Damon," I rasped out, barely, beyond relieved that he was here.

"Hey. It's okay," Damon said, softly, and stroked my hair, just as Kai emerged from the shadows.

"How dumb are you?" Kai asked him, incredulously, "I deliver you a dying Rosanna Gilbert on a silver platter and WHOOSH there it goes, right over your head."

"Damon?" I gasped out.

"You're okay," Damon assured me, but he didn't take his eyes off Kai.

"Damon..." I huffed out again, desperately.

"Uh, translation: she's about to croak," Kai scoffed, snottily, "of course, you don't have to help her. You could just walk away. She dies of a collapsed lung, no blood on your hands, and you and Elena get to live the life you always dreamed of."

Damon looked as though he was actually listening to him, actually considering this for a moment, and he finally looked down at me, and he looked conflicted.

"Either way, you better act quick," Kai goaded him.

"I'm so sorry, Rosie," Damon whispered to me.

I looked up at him, confused, and then horrified as he leant down and kissed me goodbye on the forehead. He let go of my hand and I struggled to roll on to my side in disgust. I couldn't watch him walk away from me; I couldn't let the last thing I ever saw be...that.

"That's it?" Kai asked, exasperatedly, as he watched Damon walk away silently, and leave me there to die, alone, with my killer, "he just left you? The whole point was that this would torture him for a while. I mean, you'd think he'd at least flip a coin, heads he picks you, tails he picks-"

Kai was cut off. Damon flashed back behind him and karate-chopped Kai's neck with his hand, severing his head clean from his body. I watched his head bounce and tumble across the floor, and I was stunned into silence.

"Heads it is!" I heard Damon scoff, in tickled satisfaction. He flashed back over to me and fell to my side. I was in complete shock that he had actually come back; I was failing to catch up with the ride I'd just been dragged through: revenge, death, saved, betrayed, no wait, saved again.

"You really think I was gonna leave you all alone, huh?" Damon asked me. He bit down on his wrist and I drank his blood frantically. Damon laughed at my confused face, "no way! I'm not out of nicknames for you yet."

He scooped me up into his arms and carried me out of that hellhole.

* * *

 **Salvatore Boarding House**

It was early the next day, the day that Alaric and Jo were supposed to be leaving for their honeymoon. I stood outside the front door to the Salvatore Boarding House with my hand hovering over the door knob, like I was about to waltz right in, like this was my house, and I was just...coming back with groceries or something. I took it back. I stood there awkwardly for a moment. I went to ring the front door bell. Stefan opened the door suddenly, and startled me. He apologised. He'd heard me pottering around out there for a while. I was the last to arrive. He lead the way into the parlor, where Caroline, Alaric, Matt and Tyler were already sitting, waiting. No one said anything, until Caroline broke the silence.

"Are you okay?" Caroline asked me, and then caught all of the pointed looks sent her way, and she corrected herself, "I meant, physically?"

I nodded, and smiled back at her.

"I was just explaining to the guys um, how it is we'll get to say goodbye to her," Caroline told me.

Damon walked in to the room and interrupted Caroline, "okay, let's do this. You're up first, kid."

He was looking at me. Caroline kindly joined me, and we walked together into the next room where Elena was laying in a coffin, wearing a beautiful midnight blue dress. We approached her together, and then Damon gave us some privacy. I knew how to do this. I'd done this before...I'd seen Elijah's history, and I'd relived my childhood through Enzo.

Caroline assured me, softly, "it's easy, Ro. You just take her hand...close your eyes...and let her into your thoughts."

* * *

 _I was sat in my pyjamas, on the couch, under a fluffy blanket, watching The Bachelor. I remembered this night, the night after the ball at the Mikaelson Mansion. Elena walked through the front door, in her glittering ball gown, but she didn't slam it, she didn't fall back against it, she presented herself, with a little ta-da!_

 _"What is going on? Why are we here?" I laughed at her._

 _She hurried over and flopped down beside me, her dress went poof all around her, and she smiled._ _She told me, "t_ _his is where I told you how I dealt with Jenna's death: pretty poorly, and you said to me...it takes time, Elena. I needed some time to digest everything that had happened to me, to drown out everything and everyone else, and just think about what I wanted. Not what I should be doing, who needs me more, just nothing."_

 _"I do say some crap, huh," I scoffed._

 _"No. You've always been the smart one, and most mature for your age, and I don't know why I didn't accept it until this night right here," Elena posed._

 _"A lot was going on," I reminded her._

 _"No, I think I was just plain old jealous," Elena conceded, "you said you're always making it up as you go along, but you're always getting it right, sometimes it's down the road, but you get there. The mistakes that you make, they don't hurt people, they just hurt you, and for some reason, all of mine, they hurt you too."_

 _I blinked and I was stood outside of Elena's old bedroom, in different pyjamas, with a duvet bundled up inside my arms. I smiled; I could hear her rustling around inside the room._

 _"Your half-birthday sleepover?" I asked her, incredulously, as I stepped inside._

 _She spun around and nodded; her hair was up in pigtails, she was wearing matching Hanson pyjamas._

 _"It's my subconscious. It's the strongest, happiest memories that break through," Elena explained, and slapped the bed next to her, "so, hurry up and get in here._ _I wanted to start with the hardest goodbye, 'cause I have so much more to say than just that, I have so much that I want to apologize for."_

 _"You don't have to do that-" I uttered, sincerely._

 _"I'm so sorry that I torched this house," she said, emphatically, and looked around at her old bedroom, "I had one bad memory and it wiped away all of the good ones. Damon told me what you said about the empty house in the Prison World, and I should have worked to make this our home again, to make it full of light and love again. I'm sorry that I switched off my humanity after Jeremy died, and I left you to deal with it all alone. I made the worst case scenario even worse for you. I'm sorry that I kept you in the dark all that time, and underestimated you, and didn't help you figure out what was happening to you. I'm sorry for the year of your life that you lost because you were fighting to get Damon back for me."_

 _I pulled me into a tight embrace as she started to cry and I told her to stop,_ _"I love you. You're my sister. It's all right there, in the job description, right?"_

 _She told me, emotionally, "I know that you will take care of everyone while I'm gone, I know that, but you need to let everyone take care of you, too. Okay? Please? You follow your own advice, and you think about yourself, for once."_

 _I nodded and cried, "I will, I promise."_

 _"I want you to live your life, every single minute of it, just as fiercely as you wanted that for us. So, you promise me one more thing, okay?" She insisted and she grabbed her journal from the nightstand. She passed it over to me, and requested through a shaking voice, "write it all down, everything that you accomplish in your life, every crush, when you fall in love, when you start a family, every time you fantasize about wanting to kill Damon!" We laughed hysterically, but it quickly turned back to tears and she told me, "write it down, so that one day when I wake up, I can read all about my little sister's life and I can feel like I was there."_

 _She reached out and grabbed my hands. I sobbed, "it's not fair! I'm so sorry, Elena. I'm so sorry-"_

 _"Hey! This isn't your fault!" Elena insisted._

 _I started to cry harder, and Elena squeezed my hands._

 _"Hey," she whispered, gently, "we'll both get everything that we want. We just can't have it at the same time," s_ _he wiped my tears away with her hands and she told me, "aw, hey. Rosie. You have spent your entire life making sacrifices for me. Now, it's my turn to do it for you. I love you."_

* * *

I returned, heartbroken; after today, after she was squirreled away for her own safety, I would never see my sister again. I turned around and found my brother standing right behind me. I completely broke down, and without missing a beat, he embraced me, heartily.

"I love you," I cried into him.

"I love you," he told me.

"I'm so sorry," I told him, as we eventually pulled away from each other, through massive ugly-cry tears, "this is all my fault, and I wanted to at least pretend to be strong for you."

"Hey, no, no, stop," he said and he wiped away the streams on my face, "it's my turn to tap in, yeah? I'll be right back."


	83. Nothing Has Changed

**Whitmore College - Elena, Caroline, and Bonnie's Dorm Room**

"Where do you think you'll go?" Caroline asked me as I gathered the last of my modest belongings together.

"Truthfully? I'm still not sure," I told her.

"Are you going back with Bonnie and Jeremy? God, you're all gonna end up so gorgeous and tanned and I'm gonna look like such a ghost next to you all. Wait. You do know that you don't have to leave here, right?" Caroline insisted, "I mean, yes, this dorm room you _do_ have to vacate, we all do, the school year is over, for all that we saw of it. But, you don't have to _leave_ leave. Maybe, with everything that's happened, it's a good idea for you to stay, you know. You can come stay with me! Or Damon, or Matt in his mega mansion that Tyler sort-of took back, or we could get you your own place, or-"

There was a chap on the door, mercifully. I sighed, and wandered over to answer it, assuring Caroline, "the second I figure it out, you'll be the first to...know-"

I opened the door and my entire being fell through the floor. I must have looked happier than he remembered, a lot lighter than he could last recall, and then completely blind-sided to see who was standing outside of that dorm room, who was visiting us...me, at this late hour.

 _This_ was the moment I had suspended over me for weeks now; it was all that I could think about and agonize over. What was this moment going to be? And...all I could think about was how close he was. I collided with him, and embraced him, tightly, wrapping my arms around his neck. His entire body was solid, as though he couldn't believe it, even by feeling my body against his, he could not believe this. Slowly, his arms wrapped around me. He pulled my body into his completely, and an overwhelming feeling engulfed me: I was home. I'd been back for a while but only now was I truly home.

"I'm sorry," I whispered to him.

"How?" He rasped into my neck.

"Well, I reckon I'm uh, I'm gonna...I'll just give you guys some privacy," Caroline whispered and slipped past us, to scurry down the hallway, double-time.

I finally opened my eyes and Elijah backed away, to an appropriate distance for strangers; the rest of the world must have returned to him. He'd nodded cordially to Caroline as she escaped and he'd wandered his way into the dorm room. My body responded in kind to his; I tensed up, and a horrible feeling began to simmer in the pit of my stomach. The sheer joy and elation was slipping away as the seconds ticked by. I closed the door slowly; as if simply closing that door was enough to shut out the world, and erase everything that had happened to us over the course of the last year. And it was an entire year now. It could have been closer to 11 months, but I had dragged us over that concise rounded up marker of one full rotation around the sun. Elijah glanced back at me; his eyes took a long detour up my body before they finally met mine. He didn't say anything, or rather couldn't. I saw him try.

"I…uh…I should have called," I uttered and cleared my throat awkwardly as I stepped towards him, approaching an appropriate distance for acquaintances.

"I couldn't feel you anymore," Elijah huffed out. His eyes glistened. He scoffed, "I knew that Bonnie was having a grand old time in New Mexico. But you...nothing. A light, snuffed out."

"Well…that's not always been fool proof," I muttered.

"Where have you been? How are you here?" Elijah demanded to know, "Stefan told me. You. Damon. You were gone. The Other Side was destroyed, and you along with it."

"Uh, I have been stuck in a Prison World, living the same day over and over, in 1994, with Damon...and then, alone. Bonnie's grandma and her friends made it for a psychopathic magic-siphoning guy. It's a long story, and uh…it's not a very good one, the ending is pretty terrible. And...you've come a long way so I will spare you all of that," I explained, somewhat poorly.

"Rosanna-" Elijah rasped.

"Okay. Wait," I huffed out and tried to stay composed as I rummaged around in the dresser and pulled out two crumpled up tickets. I waved them about and I told him, "I bought a ticket to New Orleans. It's one of the first things I did. I did it twice, actually," I handed them over to him and continued to ramble on, "and then...okay, everything immediately went to crap, and we got sucked into the aforementioned Siphon Psycho's vengeance plot, and I'm a pretty poor excuse for a witch now-"

"Rosanna-" Elijah rasped out again, and patted the tickets down onto the table.

"No. Please. Please, let me explain. Okay? Let me try?" I rasped, as my eyes lined with tears, "I-I couldn't come because I was afraid, and that's two-fold, because I'm not the Phoenix anymore. Bonnie is. And I was kind of scared that you weren't gonna feel the same way after that was gone. That was kind of our thing. And...even if that wasn't the case...and the stars were still aligning our way...I'm not the same person that you lost. I'm just...not. So, I've got these two massive looming blockades in the way now, and I froze. And...you never left my mind back there…not once. I was hellbent on finding a way back to you again, and that is what kept me going…when I got Damon out, when I was maddened by the loneliness _that_ is what kept me alive. You," I paused for the tears to stream down my face, and to steady my composure, "and I was so scared that wasn't gonna mean anything anymore."

Elijah released a huff of laughter and his expression wholly confused me, and actually rather irked me. His eyes were locked onto mine; they never left. I wiped away the tickling tear from my cheek and took him in. He shook his head and he closed the gap between us as he professed, "I understand your apprehension, though I do not share it. I knew it a year ago. I knew it the very second I heard your voice on Hayley's voicemail, when you opened that door, when I held you in my arms once more, and, dare I be so bold as to presume-"

Elijah's hands disappeared around my waist and up my neck, and he pulled me into a long, sensual kiss. He pressed his body up against mine; his touch triggered every nerve in my body, clouding the hurt and confusion and fear in my heart. I felt him smirk at my heated response; at the sound of my thundering heart, as I kissed him back. He pulled away ever so slightly, much to my dismay, and caressed my jaw with his thumb, his hand still at home on the nape of my neck. He professed, "I love you, Rosanna. Nothing has changed. Nothing."

I couldn't contain the smile that broke across my face, and I shook my head at my own stupidity. I scoffed and whispered, "I feel like such an idiot."

He smirked and he kissed me, slowly, waiting for a response, and then he rasped into his kiss, "how about feeling how much I missed you, instead?"


	84. The Importance of Family

**Amsterdam - August 16th 2013**

 _Dear Elena,_

 _I wish you were here. I'm sat along the edge of a canal eating a custard pastry...thing, it's baking hot, and I have nowhere to be, no fires to put out, the world doesn't need saving at this exact moment._

 _I received a package at the hotel last night, from a certain somebody in New Orleans: three tickets to the ballet staged inside a historic theater he adores. I have a classy boyfriend that surprises me, even when we are oceans apart...sorry, I had to throw that in there. I can't wipe the stupid smile off my face. Anyway, I suppose you'll want to hear an update on your boyfriend? (side note, little weird calling centuries old men our boyfriends, am I right?)_

 _The boys are still asleep. Yeah...that's been the deal. I rarely see them during the morning hours, that's when I get to see what the rest of the city has to offer (you know, everything else, aside from the bars and the beer gardens), all by myself; as you can see in the majority of the awkward Polaroid selfies I've stuck in here._

 _We always said we'd do this, together, one day...remember mom joking about packing herself in our suitcases? Wandering around breath-taking art galleries, and beautiful botanical gardens, and tale as old as time market stalls all by your lonesome gives you a lot of time to think; that's the worst part. I've been thinking a lot about our family, our mish-mash, messed-up, rag-tag band of misfits, and what it even means to call ourselves one; and then I get to thinking...yeah, they're hard work, but I'm exactly where I need to be._

 _So, I'm gonna pack up my journal, take a few more snaps, and then head back to hotel. I will follow the chanting bar patrons until I find the boys: Drinken! Drinken! Drinken!_ _They_ _will most likely be parked in their favourite seats chugging away on their huge steins of beer. Alaric and Damon will fist pump in victory, sloppily finish their beers to the rapturous applause of the crowd. They'll slump back into their chairs, groaning and belching, immediately regretting the challenge. I will wait for the amped-up crowd to filter away, and then skoosh a liter bottle of water into their faces._

 _Until next time...I love you. And I hope that when Damon takes you here, one day, this pastry shop is still on the go. Actual Heaven!_

* * *

 **August 18th 2013 - Yes, you guessed it, another Amsterdam bar**

Alaric and Damon were slumped in the afternoon sunshine, nursing their...seventh, maybe, drink of the day, occasionally raising their glasses in time to the sing-song in the background; they had no idea what the Dutch patrons were singing about, but that never stopped them. Alaric poked his face with his fingers, pulling my attention up from my journal.

"I can't...feel my cheeks," Alaric declared, confused more than concerned, and asked his equally-wasted bud, "what are we drinking?"

"No idea," Damon groaned out, and squinted at the menu. He frowned and asked him, "can you read German?"

"That's, uh, actually Dutch, I think..." Alaric told him, with a little hesitation.

Damon frowned in confusion, and asked the room, "wait, where are we?"

From the table directly behind them, I piped up, monotonously, "Amsterdam."

They both turned around, groggily, to find their completely sober travel companion writing her latest update to Elena. Two weeks in, I was no longer exasperated by their non-stop partying, I was beginning to verge on indifference. I decided to narrate my latest entry to them, with the sarcastic derision it deserved, "Dear Elena, yup, halfway across Europe, and they're still drunk."

Damon saw that I had legitimately written that down and called me out, "is that really necessary? Shouldn't you be off in New Orleans with the Original love of your life, rather than skulking in the background and judging mine, hardcore?!"

I started munching on some nuts from the bowl on the table and explained to Damon, "Elena told me to keep a journal of everything she's missing! When she wakes up in sixty-odd years and finds out that Ric died from alcohol poisoning, she's gonna want to know what happened."

Damon smirked back and quipped, "unless you tragically choke to death on those cocktail peanuts. Then I can tell her myself."

"Aw, so sweet," I scorned back, and then suggested, "how about we don't drink ourselves stupid today and we rent bikes and go see the city instead, like a normal tourist?"

"You run on ahead, kid, we'll catch up, oh and FYI, they don't wear helmets here," Damon informed me, with a snicker, "and they ride in the tram tracks! And don't look both ways!"

I rolled my eyes and muttered back, "just keeps getting funnier."

Ric shook his head at Damon, but chuckled along with his buddy. There had been some discussion that afternoon on which European city would next take our fancy; I had hoped our tour would have wrapped up by now, but the boys were not so inclined. I didn't want to leave them, but I needed to fly back sooner rather than later, I didn't want to miss the next full moon and the opportunity to finally see Hayley face to face. Damon suddenly grimaced, and then passed his phone over to Ric first; he asked whether I'd had any breakfast yet, and then showed me the images. Matt had sent crime scene photos to Damon: two unrecognizable teenagers, murdered, mutilated and strung up at the high school.

Damon dialled Stefan's number, and grumbled into the phone, "what the hell happened?"

Ric and I exchanged a look.

"Reception went a little fuzzy, brother," Damon remarked, "it sounds like you said Mom got her family of crazies back."

I slapped Damon on the arm and mouthed: are you kidding me?!

"Can I have some details?" Damon requested, rubbing his slap wound theatrically, and then relayed his brother's message in a whisper tone: one victim had bite wounds, and the other one was scorched beyond recognition. Matt found a house, foreclosed for two years, that had its power mysteriously turned back on just days after Ric's wedding. Caroline was intent on staking it out.

"Oh, it's for you," Damon randomly stated, and passed the phone over to Ric.

"Hello?" Ric grumbled, so drunk he was holding the phone upside down.

"Other side," Damon whispered.

Alaric turned the phone around and held it up to his ear, "hello?"

"Stefan needs Ric to tell him how to make a bomb," Damon finally explained to me.

Alaric rolled his eyes and slurred drunkenly. He clapped Damon on the shoulder with his free hand and chuckled, "okay. Great. Well, the party's over." He nodded along to whatever Stefan was saying, and eventually sighed out in defeat and muttered, "alright. Well, I'm gonna have to call you back from a less populated place, and then I'm gonna blissfully pass out and pretend that this never happened."

Ric dropped Damon's phone, out of lack of coordination, rather than malice; it clattered on to the table. He mumbled a little apology, chuckled to himself and struggled to his feet. The chair leg took a swipe at his leg, according to Ric's interpretation of events, but he managed to stay upright, avoid any injury to himself or others, and he tottered away. Damon watched Ric chuckle something under his breath, squint around his surroundings, and finally get his bearings. Satisfied he wasn't about to bumble into the traffic, Damon returned to me, and found a predictable look of contempt.

"He'll be fine," Damon scoffed.

"Lily won," I said, "as much as we did everything to stop her, she actually got her family back."

"If Stefan says he's got it, he's got it," Damon said, and swished his hand around dismissively.

I narrowed my gaze and asked him, "do you really believe that, or is that just some excuse to continue your slow crawl towards rock-bottom?"

"Do you know how many days need to tick by before I see Elena again?" Damon snapped back, "22,916 days, and that's assuming you get some old person's disease. I haven't even begun to approach rock-bottom."

He raised his glass to me before taking a chug.

"Listen to yourself, Damon!" I whined, "Elena wants you to live your life!"

"Rosie-Pants, if you're gonna be here, you don't get to play the "What Would Elena Do" game," Damon scorned back.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I hit back, a little quieter.

Damon heard the break in my voice and I saw a twinge of guilt appear on his face. He huffed out, with considerably less fire, "nothing."

Hello, awkward silence, nice to see you again, so soon. We both knew fine what was being screamed into the void between us: _Elena's gone. You're here. Can't do anything about that. It sucks. Shut up. The end._ Damon downed the last of his own drink, and snatched up Alaric's abandoned one: can't have an awkward silence if you're always chugging bourbon.

Damon's face crumpled after the first sip, and he groaned out, "ugh, I've had some janky-ass bourbon in my time, but this is, bleugh,"

He slid the glass across the table for me to try. I sniffed the drink, took a single sip, and rolled my eyes in annoyance, "it's not bourbon. It's tea."

* * *

We scoured every corner of the markets set up across the street from the bar we were in. Alaric had definitely tottered off in this direction; we'd seen him grab a pretzel, and bumble around this general area on his cell. He couldn't have gone too far.

"Ric was right here!" I whined, "how did we lose him?"

"You're wearing terrible shoes for trailing someone, your eyes suck, and you're slow," Damon hit back, without missing a beat.

I stopped in my tracks, and scorned back at him, exasperated, "oh, _I'm slow_? You just spent the last few weeks in Europe with a guy pretending to be drunk, and you didn't even notice!"

Damon shrugged me off dismissively, and very, very annoyingly, and he said, "true. I did not notice, but I was trashed! What's your excuse? Too busy with your trans-Atlantic courtship? What is the deal with that anyway? I had to endure four months of your pining and now you're both skipping off to different sides of the planet all summer?"

"There is no deal with me and Elijah," I told him, sternly, "we are fine."

"Here's a thought, just spit-balling here, but when you love someone as much as your googly eyes say you do, shouldn't you be running off into the sunset, I don't know, together?" Damon said.

"We have! Not that it's any of your business, but we both happen to share an understanding of the importance of _family_ , so here I am!" I scorned back.

There was that twinge of guilt briefly flashing across his mug again. He scoffed and said, "so...he's your long-distance boyfriend whilst you babysit me?"

"And Ric," I corrected him, "speaking of, where do you wanna go? Should we turn around, or should we go straight? I feel like we passed that coffee cart all-"

I babbled on for a minute, I think I was just talking to mask the worry; where the hell was he? He wasn't answering his cell. He was sober, at least; but why? What the hell was he doing? All I heard was the van honking: BEEP! BEEP! BEEP BEEP! BEEP! Damon flashed into me, and slammed me back against a parked truck, pinning me out of the way of the speeding van, his own more-robust body stood as a last minute barrier. The van sped by with a sharp gust of air in tow, still honking in annoyance. I was stunned for a moment, processing what had just happened, recovering from the close call.

"Wow. Thank you!" I huffed out.

I expected to see Damon puff up his chest and milk the fact that he had just saved my life, but instead he smiled back weakly and said, "yeah. Of course."

That...did not add up.

"Hang on...did you see that truck coming?" I asked him, hesitantly.

Damon knew that he was caught, but he still played through the indignity of trying to cover up his momentary lapse in judgment, and scoffed back, "what?"

I was appalled. I whined back at him, "did you just hesitate to save my life?"

"Relax, it was three seconds," Damon scoffed.

"Three seconds? I could have died!" I whined.

"You're right, Ro!" Damon jested, "had I done nothing, Elena would be here, and it would all be grand!"

"Enough! I'm not gonna spend the rest of my life thinking that you resent me!" I scorned back.

"How else am I supposed to feel, huh?" Damon whined, "every time I look at you, all I see is _not_ Elena!"

I bit the inside of my cheek and I told him, shakily, "you get to see her again! I'm so sorry this happened, but I lost Elena too, Damon, _my sister_. For good! And you're one of the few reminders I have to hold onto, so you can resent me or love me...but you're stuck with me."

* * *

 **Amsterdam Schiphol Airport - Departures Lounge**

"Fancy meeting you here," Damon whispered behind me, and compelled the barista, "she will have a blueberry muffin on the house, and I will have absolutely nothing from this assortment of crap."

I put the last of my euros in the tip jar and walked away from Damon. Of course, he followed.

"What are you doing?" I stopped to ask him.

"Heading back to Mystic Falls, with you," Damon determined, playfully.

"Yeah, I'm not doing that," I informed him, sternly, and sauntered away from him again, "the full moon is in two days. I need to get back to New Orleans."

" _We_ need to get back to Mystic Falls. According to Caroline, a Heretic is clipping his gnarly Heretic toenails in my master bath, right now, literally as we speak," Damon insisted.

"That sounds absolutely terrible, and it also sounds like _your_ problem," I replied and took a seat at my gate.

"I was hoping you would help me," Damon said, and parked himself down next to me, "you know, just like old times, get the band back together, the dream team, the MVP's of the ol' Scooby Gang-"

"Oh, so, I guess it's a good thing I didn't get hit by a truck then, huh?!" I told him, sarcastically.

"Oh, come on, Rosie! Is that what this is about? It was three seconds!" Damon whined.

I scoffed back, "do you know how long three seconds are in a life-or-death situation?"

Damon stood up, looking quite overwhelmed and upset. He told me, "the first second, I thought of how amazing it would feel to have Elena in my arms again. By second number two, I was kissing her...and by the third, I remembered you're my best friend, and that if anything ever happened to you, I would lose my mind. So, yes, Rosanna, I know exactly how long three seconds are!"

I was clearly touched by his confession. I hesitated for a moment before finally bashfully stating, "...I was just checking. You've never called me by my actual name before."

"Serious times, Ro-Ro. I will wait for Elena, and you're gonna help me, cause you know what, you're stuck with me, too," Damon determined, really sweetly.

"The Heretics are out because of me," I said, sadly.

"No, Ro, the Heretics are out because my mother's a lunatic and everyone's been too scared to stop her," Damon said, and sauntered away from me.

"Damon?" I called after him, "wait, don't walk away."

"Have a nice moonlight chat, kiddo. Give Crazy Klaus my best," Damon said, with a smirk.


	85. Everything Is Just As I Left It

**Mikaelson Compound - New Orleans**

Hope and I were set up in one of the upstairs sitting rooms on a fluffy blanket, spread out in front of a cozy fire. We played with all the toys surrounding us; her attention drifted from one to the next. She had so many; she was spoiled, and rightly so. She giggled and babbled away to me like we were old friends. She was sweet and loving and so curious in nature. She was amazing.

Elijah thanked his eldest sister for alerting him to the arrival of their guest and leant against the door frame for a while, simply watching us play together. Hope's bashful smile at noticing he was there had given him away.

"She's beautiful," I said, and caressed her rosy cheeks.

Elijah flashed to my side, extended his hand, and swiftly pulled me up to my feet, and into him; he kissed me like he'd missed me. He eventually asked, "what are you doing here? I wasn't expecting you 'til tomorrow."

"Tomorrow's the full moon, and I wasn't going to risk a delayed flight setting me back a month," I reminded him.

"Of course. Yes, of course, I'm not complaining," he said, and joined me on the floor with Hope.

I was tickled by the image of Elijah, in his pristine suit, laughing and playing with his baby niece on the floor; it suited him, pure uninterrupted happiness. He asked me about Europe. I lamented that it was beautiful, and breath-taking, but sometimes hard to enjoy given the company I had to keep in line.

"We'll go back, together. I'll show you my France, my old stomping grounds, there are so many places I want you to see, well, experience more than see," Elijah said, losing himself in thought.

"I've seen a little of your France," I reminded him.

He smirked, and conceded, "you will see it all, for real."

 _I won't go to college...or get married. Or go up the Eiffel Tower, or dance by the banks of the River Seine. I won't get to know if Elijah really was the love of my life!_

"Promise me you'll dance with me, on the banks of the River Seine," I requested, somewhat randomly.

He looked into my eyes, and he promised me, "you have my word."

"Good. On to more pressing trips. Do you have a place that you meet her, when the full moon hits?" I asked him, but he wasn't permitted to answer.

Klaus walked into the room and jumped into our conversation unbidden. At the mere sound of his brother's approach, Elijah had instantly scowled in anger.

"Rosanna! I was under the impression you obliterated, love; how lovely to see that isn't the case. Elijah has been quite insufferable in your absence, and remains so," Klaus greeted me, in his own weirdly back-handed, sort-of-polite way, "I'd offer to accompany you out to the Swampland myself, Rosanna, but I fear my fragile ego could not endure the litany of insults Hayley has no doubt prepared."

Elijah was quite visibly irritated by his brother's interruption, and he did nothing to mask the fact. He declared, smartly, "yes, I doubt that your presence is particularly welcome anywhere."

Klaus feigned offense, and gasped, "my own brother, greeting me with such disdain!" He turned his attention solely to me to discuss Elijah as though he wasn't even there, "what is your take on the whole situation, love? Is he still angry for my part in Hayley's curse? I hope he hasn't spoken harshly of my intent. Need I remind him once again that it was my ploy that kept her alive?"

Elijah spun on his heel to face Klaus heatedly. I stood back from them both; I was not prepared to mediate. Elijah scoffed back at his brother, sarcastically, "of course, forgive me. So, you would call this an act of heroism even as you bask in her torment?"

"I would be markedly more sympathetic if Hayley simply apologized," Klaus declared, "after all, it was her that tried to run off with my daughter. But, that doesn't appear to be the source of your hatred, dear brother, so let me take another stab at it...hmm, is it the unfortunate, avoidable death of Gia that has prickled you so? You've got your first choice of plaything back from the dead, I'd have thought you would have gotten over her by now," Klaus smirked at me and said, "you'll have to try a little harder, love."

Freya, the eldest, most recently resurfaced Mikaelson, stormed into the room with clear frustration on her face, but no surprise. She interrupted the confrontation and requested of her brothers, tersely, "if you two must poke at one another, may I suggest doing it elsewhere?"

Elijah took one last look at Hope before he walked out of the room without another word. Freya went to follow him out, but stopped to make one last statement to Klaus, "nicely done. At this rate, you'll drive the entire family away."

"I see everything is just as I left it, baby girl, nothing changed, nope...nothing at all," I told Hope, picking her up, and completing the entire set of household members walking away from Klaus.

* * *

 **The Bayou**

"You do this every month?" I asked Elijah, surveying the large spread of food across the picnic tables: meat and cheese platters, bread, sides, desserts, and at least a dozen bottles of champagne, "this lot would be perfectly content with a pack of cold ones, a couple pizzas, some pants."

Elijah laughed, and he said, "I'm attempting to make amends, it is a gesture of good faith, an assurance that Klaus' actions were solely his own."

"Hayley would never lump you into the same bracket as Klaus. And if Hayley wouldn't, Jackson wouldn't, ergo none of the pack would," I assured him.

"He shouldn't have spoken to you in that manner," Elijah said, sadly.

"I never listen to _anything_ Klaus says, so don't worry about it," I assured him.

"You don't want me to elaborate on who he referred to?" He asked.

"Um, not really. He wants you to, so...I'm gonna stick with, no," I said, "I...died, as far as you were aware-"

"For all intents and purposes, I did too," Elijah said, "I harbor great shame for my actions in your absence."

I didn't have an opportunity to ask him to elaborate on that part. He suddenly became very tense, and his eyes narrowed. His gaze snapped towards the treeline.

"I'm going to need you to do exactly as I say," Elijah said, casually, "a truck is approaching. Stay here with Hope, and let me deal with them."

I nodded in agreement. Soon enough, a truck pulled up, and Elijah walked closer toward Hope and I, protectively. I tended to Hope who was fussing a little, perhaps picking up on the sharp switch in our demeanor, and Elijah watched a man with an assault rifle strapped to his chest step out of the vehicle and approach us.

"Hell of a spot for a picnic," the stranger declared.

"Yes, if you can tolerate the mosquitoes, it's actually rather serene," Elijah quipped and politely offered up a platter of food, "finger sandwich?"

It was clear that he did not trust the men but saw them as nothing more than an annoyance he was none too pleased to be dealing with.

"Trouble is, you're trespassing," the man explained, "this whole area is now property of Kingmaker Land Development. In two years, it's gonna be golf courses and condos."

Two additional similarly armed men joined their comrade on the front line, and stood across from Elijah, presumably to beef up their position and scare him into heeding their word. Elijah was not the least bit amused by this news, and he noted, "I take it you're not on the Board of Directors."

"Uh, my team and I are in...animal control," the man said, vaguely, "there's been an influx of wild predators in the area. My boss pays, uh, top dollar to wipe them out."

"Wild predators?" I asked him, narrowing my eyes.

"Wolves, if you could believe it," he told me, as though he were trying to impress me, "killed a half dozen last night alone."

I hummed in response and casually turned Hope's stroller around so that it was facing away from the men and their big guns; I did not want her to see the carnage that was about to ensue. The hunter held his assault rifle into the air for emphasis; he was telling Elijah but he was looking at me as he said, "and this baby can take a head clean off."

Elijah smiled tightly at the man, and glanced back subtly to check where Hope was. He caught my look and then took a step towards the hunters.

"Anyway, I'm gonna have to ask you to clear out ASAP," the man insisted, and made the mistake of clapping Elijah on the shoulder.

Elijah grabbed him by the arm and spun him around, twisting his arm so hard behind his back that his bones snapped loudly. The other two hunters immediately raised their guns at Elijah, but he easily flashed towards them, disarmed them, and cracked their rifles so hard back into their chests, they fall flat on their backs, winded. The first hunter, cradled his broken arm against his chest and used his rifle as a crutch, scrambling up to his feet. Elijah waited a beat for him to do so, before kicking out the gun from under him, tossing it aside and grabbing the man by the throat.

Elijah stared directly into his eyes and compelled him, "call off your men. You leave this place. You seek another line of work. No more dead wolves."

"I'm just an independent contractor," the man coughed out, "there are other teams out there. I don't have the authority to-"

Displeased, Elijah snapped the man's neck before he could say anything more and dropped him onto the ground. Hope happily played with her small stuffed toy whilst the grown-ups above her digested this latest development.

"It appears I have a small errand to run," Elijah declared, "I trust that you will be okay waiting here, with Hope."

"A small errand, huh..." I muttered.

"These other teams. I wish to perform a quick sweep of the surroundings and eradicate them," Elijah declared, "I won't be long."

I nodded, and he disappeared before my eyes.

* * *

 **The Bayou**

Hope was bundled up in my arms; she played with my hair as I sloshed our way through the Bayou in desperate search of Hayley. Elijah had dispensed the other teams as promised, in record time, and we split up, within shouting distance, to continue our search.

"HAYLEY! HAYLEY!" I hollered out.

Elijah suddenly flashed back, and stopped me from proceeding; he insisted that I stay here for a moment.

"What is it?" I asked him, anxiously, "Elijah?!"

He flashed away, but I didn't dare take another step. I held Hope close to me, and I tried desperately not to think of steel-jawed animal traps, and huge puddles of blood.

"Rosanna? What the hell?" Jackson huffed out from behind me, and then asked Elijah a tad more angrily, "where is she?"

I jumped at Elijah's sudden reappearance, and then I actually realised that Jackson was completely naked, covered in blood, and hiding behind a tree, for support and a degree of modesty.

"Where the hell is Hayley?" Jackson barked again, at both of us.

We brought Jackson back to the campsite. I used a bread knife from the picnic to pry out one of the bullets from Jackson's shoulder. He hissed and groaned in pain as I finally freed the last one; I apologised; he shook it off. The wound on his leg was gradually healing from the mangled bloody mess it started out as; he'd clearly wrestled his way out of a trap in his wolf-form.

"Are you alright?" Elijah asked me.

I nodded and doused my bloody hands with a water bottle. Elijah rolled up his sleeve and offered Jackson his wrist, albeit reluctantly.

Jackson rolled his eyes and insisted, "I'm good. We need to find Hayley."

"There's still no sign of her," Elijah told him, and lowered his voice somewhat to admit, "I've seen the bodies."

"What?" I huffed out.

"Hunters set up traps all over the Bayou. Mowed us down with gunfire. Any wolf that wasn't taken out scattered," Jackson lamented. He winced and looked down at his own gunshot wounds. He gritted his teeth, clearly dreading the question, "Elijah... how many bodies?"

Elijah looked away from Jackson, knowing the crushing weight of his knowledge, and silently answered the man's question. Jackson was momentarily stunned by this revelation and tried to keep it together. He took a moment to think.

"A trap wouldn't hold Hayley after she turned back," he said, and he glanced over at Hope, who was watching us all curiously, "nothing would stop her from seeing that little girl. Something's wrong."

"I agree. Rosanna, you need to take Hope back to the Compound," Elijah determined. He turned to Jackson and said, "I will continue the search. You stay here, you tend to your dead-"

"No! No," Jackson cut him off and declared, "I got five hours 'til I'm a wolf again. I'm coming with you. Elijah, she's my wife."

"Aww!" I sang out, at that revelation, momentarily jarring the two of them, "you're both coming with us, actually. We've searched every nook and cranny of this place, we are wasting our time, chasing our tails. We need a big, bad locator spell. I tried one on a severely outdated road map, and got nothing. I don't think she's here."

"Fine. Let's go. With less wolf puns," Jackson scoffed and limped towards the car.

I smirked back at him, but Elijah took my hand to hold me back, to talk briefly in private.

"You didn't mention the spell earlier," Elijah whispered, "you're so certain she's not here?"

"You had your errand, I had mine," I said, with a shrug, but he didn't let go of my hand. I looked back at him, uncertain of where he was taking this, and asked him outright, "what, Elijah? Just say it."

"You got nothing? What does that mean? She's not here, she's not alive, or you couldn't do the spell?" he asked.

"I can do a garden-variety locator spell. They're like day one in newbie witch training, I'm on...whatever day traversing planes of reality back and forth through prison worlds is taught, sorry, self-taught," I snapped back.

"I didn't mean to question your abilities, I only wish to remove a few blades of hay from the stack as I search," Elijah said.

"I don't think she's in the Bayou. I don't think she's dead. I couldn't do the spell, not out of lack of want nor ability, but out of some other force masking her energy...I think," I informed him, "I need Freya's help."

"Can we haul ass? I'm on a clock here," Jackson hollered out the window, and that we did.

* * *

 **Mikaelson Compound**

Klaus summoned his eldest sister, interrupting her night of partying, to help 'The Little Witch Who Couldn't' with a run of the mill locator spell. He bounced his baby daughter around and soothed her little sniffles, but his mind was elsewhere.

"You're worried about her," I said, my eyes glued to his furrowed brow.

Klaus snapped on to me and scoffed back, "I prefer to know the whereabouts of my enemies. Besides, Hayley has a history of taking what's mine."

"That's a load of bluster. He knows what she means to you, knows you would not botch any attempt to find her. So yes, he worries she is truly lost. But we're not all as negative as Niklaus, and I would like to see for myself," Freya said. She sprinkled a circle of black sand around a map pinned down with flickering candles, and then she extended her hand to me and requested, "may I?"

I took her hand, permitting her to channel my power, and Freya muttered under her breath, "vinde val tratunderes. Vinde val tratunderes."

I had barely begun to feel the draining effect of her spell and then suddenly, Freya gasped out loudly. Her eyes flew open. It was painfully obvious from the look on her face that something wasn't right.

"I-I can't find her," Freya whispered.

An 'I told you so' wasn't entirely appropriate in this scenario, so I squashed it back down with great difficulty.

"There's nothing...it's like she doesn't exist," Freya anxiously attempted to recount.

Klaus' eyes widened in alarm, and he whispered, "...or she's dead."

Right on cue, Jackson and Elijah suddenly returned from their friendly visit to the architect behind the wolf pack massacre: Lucien.

"No! No. No. You have to find her!" Jackson insisted, refusing to believe what he'd just overheard.

"She's not dead," I said, "she's just hidden from our sight-"

"Well, where the bloody hell is she then?" Klaus scorned, "spirited away to some other prison world?"

"Yeah, we're not making jokes about that yet-" I seethed and stepped up to him.

"Stop. We'll do it again, as many times as we have to," Freya insisted, and reconfigured her set up.

"Do not bite," Elijah whispered in my ear, "I will squeeze Lucien for more information. Help Freya one more time and then sequester yourself and Hope out of harm's way," he paused to take the look I shot his way and he intercepted what was most certainly a futile rebuttal and politely reminded me, "you're the only chew toy here that won't recover with a lie-down."

* * *

Jackson was chained up in the courtyard mid-way through our last attempt at the spell. He hollered out in agony and pleaded with us to continue, one more time; he couldn't go an entire month not knowing what happened to his wife. My heart broke for him, but his bones broke much louder. I promised that I wouldn't stop. I'd find her. And then I reluctantly complied with the other big promise I'd made that night: get the hell out of the way of the rampaging werewolf.

I spelled the door to Hope's bedroom, and we rode it out together. Jackson went quiet. It was quiet for a long time, until it wasn't. I figured that Freya had somehow managed to suppress the transformation and now nature was fighting back. A table or chair was smashed into smithereens. Wood shards clattered across the floor. Klaus bellowed something. Jackson hollered out. He was cut off. Thundering footsteps. Punches. Bodies slamming, against walls, against railings. Screaming, right from the pit of the gut. It wasn't Jackson's turn. I de-spelled the door, quickly, picked up Hope, and stopped in the doorway, taken aback by what we found.

"My parents left me! Yours turned their backs on you! Look at us now, Klaus!" Hayley roared out furiously. She was steps away from me, at the end of the balcony, slamming her fists into Klaus' chest, pushing him backwards.

"Niklaus!" Elijah bellowed from below.

Hayley ignored Elijah's call and kept shoving Klaus in the chest as she hollered, "she deserves something better than what we had, and all I have ever wanted for her is something better! Fight back! FIGHT BACK!"

I dropped Hope for a second, and I slammed them apart with my magic. Hayley didn't care for an explanation for the blast, assuming Freya was butting in. Klaus stood there silently, and did not engage again, for he noticed who stood behind her. This only made Hayley more furious.

"HAYLEY!" I shouted as she lunged for him once more.

Hayley froze at the sound of my voice, and then she slowly turned around, and saw her little girl standing there, holding on to my hand. Hope let go and started slowly toddling over to her parents at the end of the balcony. I followed behind her, instinctively, but I wasn't needed; she had this. Hayley's mouth was open in shock, and a wave of guilt washed over her face; she covered her mouth with her hand in horror. Everyone watched on in silence.

"Ohhhh," Hayley moaned, "she's walking. When did she start walking?"

Everyone remained silent. Hayley looked as though she was on the brink of breaking down as she slowly walked towards her daughter and met her half-way. She finally picked up Hope, too overwhelmed by emotion to remember that she was covered in blood, and she started to cry as her baby cooed in her arms.

"I missed it. I missed everything," Hayley cried, quietly into her daughter's embrace. She kissed Hope's cheek and then opened her arms to me, whispering, tearfully, "I missed you. I got your message."

She embraced me, tightly, and we cried together as Freya, Jackson, and Elijah continued to watch sadly from the courtyard. I looked over Hayley's shoulder and caught Klaus looking tearful, and dare I say ashamed of what he had done.

* * *

 **Mikaelson Compound - Elijah's bedroom**

"Have they settled in?" Elijah asked me.

He'd interrupted my intense staring match with the ceiling tiles. I sat upright on his bed and nodded, telling him, "yeah. They'll be happy there. I figured that the still relatively new Mr and Mrs should have the rest of the night to themselves though."

"They'll have the rest of their lives together. It's not every day your best friend comes back to life," Elijah rebutted.

"We have the rest of our lives too. I don't plan on any repeats," I said, with a shrug, "it's a really beautiful apartment. Thank you for sorting it all out for them."

Elijah had secured the apartment directly across the street for Hayley and her family by paying the management a compelling visit; the deed was put in Jackson's name to prevent any unwelcome visits from Klaus; a compromise somewhere between Hayley's deep loathing and Klaus' incessant paranoia was reached.

"My pleasure," Elijah said, "you looked a million miles away when I walked in."

I gestured to my phone, and ranted, "I left them alone for one week and Bonnie and some two-bit charlatan managed to bring Jo back from the dead, along with some random Heretic. I didn't even know that Bonnie was back in town, which also raises a 'why's Jeremy not with her' question."

"Jo? Alaric's wife?" Elijah asked.

"Uh...very almost wife, I guess," I said, "you know, it's almost like they plan this stuff. Oh, sorry, were you thinking of staying one more day? Maybe enjoying your best friend's lack of curse for just one more measly day? NOPE! Can't! We messed up! Come back and fix it! Right on time..." I stopped at his own suddenly pre-occupied expression, and asked him, "what's your million mile gaze for?"

"I'm learning from my mistakes," Elijah declared, sincerely, "I made a promise that I would never hide anything from you; I would be honest, and truthful, in spite of any urges I may have to battle, against my greater desire to keep you safe and far from danger, always...honesty."

"That is quite the preface," I replied.

"I received some unsettling information from Lucien Castle back there. Naturally, I didn't trust the source...but I trust Freya," Elijah said.

"And, what unsettling information is that?" I asked him.

"I fed on a prophetic witch, her blood is still in my system, and I saw...what she saw. She spoke of a weapon that could kill Originals. I needed to know the legitimacy of her claims. Freya confirmed there is a terrible shadow over Klaus and I. Rebekah, too. If the prophecy is fulfilled, we will all fall: one by friend, one by foe, and one...by family," Elijah explained.

"Oh..." I said, "just when I thought all loose ends were tied up, and we were...headed for something resembling normalcy here."

"It is utter nonsense, and it should not interfere with your immediate travel plans," Elijah determined.

"You mean, with my plans to get the hell out of the blast zone?" I said.

Elijah smirked as I stepped closer to him. He rasped, "Rosanna-"

"I'm still going, and I'm not arguing with you, not this time. Ric told me in no uncertain terms that he would never bail on his family, so I can't bail on him. I was just going to say that I don't have to leave right this minute," I whispered and kissed him softly.


	86. You Deserve Better

**Salvatore Boarding House - Parlor**

I had my mission: take this shiny ruby to Bonnie's accidentally resurrected pal Oscar, and ask him a few questions about it; see how he was coping with his return from...wherever the hell he was. The front door of Heretic HQ swung right open, and the place seemed pretty low on actual Heretics.

I crept around the house quietly until Enzo suddenly snorted from the doorway and declared, "I'm afraid this house no longer has an open-door policy to the local riff-raff."

"You're still living here, aren't you?" I asked him, sarcastically, and continued to look around the parlor despite Enzo's warning.

Enzo laughed and asked me, "should we spend a few moments catching up before I throw you out? How was your summer holiday? Meet any charming Euro-hunks? Girl, please tell me you didn't just follow Damon around with spare bottles of bourbon-"

I gave him a look and assured him, "I didn't, but it's sweet of you to be concerned about my love life."

"Hmm. Well, I do admire your nerve, sticking by Damon like a shadow," he said, "now, myself? I'd be flat-hunting on the other side of the planet if I were the only thing standing between Damon Salvatore and his everlasting happiness with Elena. Maybe the danger gives you a thrill? It could be a case of puppy love-"

I turned and smiled tightly, sauntering right up to him as I posed, "see, now I think you're projecting. You're the one sleeping at Lily Salvatore's feet, hoping for some of her good table scraps."

Enzo, no longer amused by our little game, laughed in my face, and said, "good talk. Nice of you to stop by."

He grabbed me by the arm and lead me back towards the front door, like the good little henchman he was. I slipped out of his grasp and turned to face him once again, and said, "um, here's the thing...I really need to talk to Oscar."

"What about?" He asked me, suspiciously.

"Witch business," I told him, casually, "super boring."

Enzo scoffed, and said, "well, I'm afraid Oscar is not feeling quite like himself today, so maybe another time."

Just then, a woman's loud scream of pain rang out from upstairs. I looked up at Enzo, both curious and startled by the sound. He wasn't startled at all. He froze for a moment with a look of utter annoyance and muttered, 'bollocks' before flashing away to deal with it. I followed him, quickly (by human standards). A portly young man was feeding enthusiastically on a maid; I assumed this gentleman was the infamous Oscar. Enzo was struggling to keep him at bay, as I rushed over to help the maid.

"Not supposed to eat the help, mate," Enzo scorned and slapped the back of Oscar's head.

"A little blood, please?" I requested, tersely.

Enzo sighed, he nipped at his wrist, fed the maid his blood, and then grabbed both sides of her face to force her eyes into his. He compelled her, "clean yourself up and take a spa day. Forget all about Mr. Chompers and his very bad manners."

I slowly and hesitantly walked towards Oscar. His mouth was coated in blood; his chest rose and fell heavily. He stared back at me, blankly.

"Hello there, Oscar, I presume," I greeted him, "Bonnie says hi, by the way, wishes she could be here. She's dealing with another accidentally resurrected friend of ours."

"Who's Bonnie?" Oscar grumbled back.

"You uh, you met her back in Myrtle Beach?" I reminded him.

Oscar shook his head heavily and he said, wearily, "I've never been to Myrtle Beach. But, I do remember...that dark room in the basement. Are you the one who got me out?"

I was thoroughly confused, and Enzo seemed quite intrigued by the tale. I asked Oscar, "sorry, out of where?"

Oscar's face started to contort into his vampire form as he glared back at me. He muttered under his breath, "I think I'm still hungry."

"Whoa, okay...you uh, you just get a grip on yourself for five minutes, and we'll get you some more blood," I requested, anxiously, "I came to ask you about the Phoenix Stone."

"What stone?" Oscar groaned out, angrily, "why do people keep asking me questions I don't know the answer to?!"

He started pacing around the room, growing more and more overwhelmed. I pulled the Phoenix Stone out of my jacket pocket and showed it to him. I asked him, "this stone. Know it?"

I caught Enzo's eyes flicker in recognition, as he stepped forward for a better look at the blood red stone.

"There!" Oscar huffed out, shakily, "you got me out of there."

I...most certainly did not. My phone suddenly began to jingle.

"Hold that thought," I requested, politely, and disappeared out of the room swiftly to answer the call, "what is it?"

"I need a quick favor," Damon said.

"I'm still working on your last favor," I scorned back.

"It's a quick one! I'm gonna need you to tell Ric that we made a tiny mistake, and his rebooted bride is not actually his wife," Damon said, way too casually.

"What?!" I hissed back.

"Yeah...it turns out that the stone doesn't actually have any magic juice to bring back any old corpse. It's more like a supernatural holding cell for a bunch of lost vampire souls, one of which Bonnie accidentally shoved into Jo's body," Damon informed me, sheepishly. I could almost hear him cringing. He babbled on, "we all had a moment back there where we thought woohoo! Bonnie's a witch again, you two are swapping back real subtly...Jo's alive...everything's back to normal-"

"Oh, my God," I muttered, ignoring a lot of his jabber, "that means that Oscar is..."

"-Oscar is just some random vampire in a Heretic candy shell," Damon finished my thought for me.

"Damon, Bonnie suggested I go to your house to talk to him about the stone," I told him, sharply.

"Bad idea!" Damon insisted, "cut the conversation short. Call Ric from the car on the way home!"

"Oh, no! Don't you put this on me. This is nothing to do with me!" I scoffed back.

"Well, I'm sorry. And...I'm trying to do this thing where I do right by Elena, and I just...I-I just don't think that she'd want me to crush his spirit like that," Damon whined, "let him down gently, yeah?"

"Is this you doing right by Elena, or you not wanting to break your best friend's heart?" I scorned into the phone.

Damon didn't reply to being called out.

"Fine, but you owe me," I grumbled.

"Thanks, Ro-Ro," Damon said, with audible relief in his voice.

Enzo joined me in the hallway and said, "found Oscar a few blood bags stashed in the study. Probably expired, but he does not seem picky."

I shifted on my feet, awkwardly, hummed, and then told him, "cool...cool. So, I have to head back to Whitmore."

Enzo grabbed me by the arm again, and stopped me from leaving. He said, "I meant to ask you about this pretty stone. Where'd you find it?"

"Rocks 'R' Us. It was on sale," I told him.

Enzo moved his hand down my arm, tightly gripping my wrist so that he could see the stone better. I clutched the stone as hard as I could to keep him from taking it.

"That's funny," he said, "Lily's been looking for one just like it."

"Oh, so that's why your eyes totally lit up when you saw it," I said, sarcastically, "well, the bargain bin was full of them. I'm sure they have more."

Enzo smirked, and said, "or, I could just take this one."

"Yeah, I don't think so," I scorned back at him and struggled against his vice-like grip.

Suddenly, Oscar, who had clearly made his way through the entire stash of blood bags, burst through the door and stalked towards us, freaking out all the while. He cried out, "I'm not going back in there!"

I froze in terror. Oscar flashed into me, grabbed the back of my head. Before he could bite down into my neck, I cast a silent pain infliction spell that caused him to groan in agony and fall backwards. Once I let go of my hold over him, he quickly scrambled into a defensive position. He shook his head, maniacally, and called out, "no! I'm not going back!"

Oscar lunged for me again, but before he could get close, Enzo flashed and slammed into him and flinging him backward into the coffee table, which shattered into pieces beneath him.

"Thank you," I huffed out.

"No worries. What the hell is he talking about?" Enzo implored.

"Let's just say...you were right, Oscar's not himself today," I replied, vaguely. I wanted to trust Enzo. I did. But his blind devotion to Lily Salvatore made that damn near impossible.

Once again, Oscar struggled back up on his feet, this time even more agitated and upset than before and he roared out, "why does everyone keep calling me Oscar? My name's not Oscar!"

The force of Oscar's yell was so heated and emotive it triggered his body's latent magic; the overhead lights shattered and exploded into a shower of sparks. I screamed and braced myself from the glass. We all stared at each other, equally shocked by this development.

"Did I do that?" Oscar muttered under his breath.

Oscar was now much calmer and visibly curious about his new powers. He slowly waved his hands through the air; the chandelier in the hallway fell to the ground with a mighty crash and shattered everywhere. I flinched in fear and instinctively took a step behind Enzo. I tapped his arm and whispered, "time to run!"

Oscar stormed after us throughout the house, shattered some more light bulbs - clearly his favourite trick - and then launched an axe from the fireplace in our direction. Enzo slammed a door behind us.

"Vis porta!" I bellowed at the slammed door.

"Spelling the door?" Enzo remarked, incredulously, looking desperately around the room I'd led us to, "I thought you were leading us to a secret passage."

I gave him back the exact same incredulous look and gestured about as I scorned, "this isn't Scooby-Doo!" Oscar slammed his body up against the door. I jumped in shock and then suggested, "maybe he'll tire himself out, and we just go out the front door?"

"Or, I could just jump out that window while you fend for yourself," Enzo said, with a little shrug, and started walking towards the window.

I looked back at him, a little hurt, thankfully he didn't see that, and then I grabbed his arm, and held out my free hand, expectantly.

"First, give me that stone back," I insisted.

"First, tell me why it's so special," Enzo rebutted, turning to face me square on.

There was no resistance inside my hold, he wasn't going anywhere, so I let go and I told him what I knew, "it's some kind of trap for a bunch of souls. If Lily wants it, someone she cares about must be inside."

I didn't take any pleasure in the look of realization spreading across his face. He groaned out, in annoyance, "Julian."

I rolled my eyes and grumbled, "great. Because we need another Heretic running loose around here."

"He's not a Heretic. He's a long-lost vampire boyfriend," he said.

"Then you definitely don't need it," I scoffed back, "do you really want to hand her the means to bring the dead boyfriend back into the picture? Have some dignity!"

As we continued to quibble, Oscar continued to slam his body against the door, and the loud banging noise caused me to flinch in fear every time.

"What makes you think I want romantic advice from a love-lorn witch?" Enzo scoffed.

Without thinking, with my eyes still locked on to the battered door, I told him, "I'm just saying-maybe you deserve better!"

Before Enzo could come up with a clever retort, a thrumming noise emanated from outside the door. Enzo's eyes widened in alarm, and he uttered, "bad news - I think Oscar just learned how to siphon."

Oscar burst into the room and flashed into me, pinning me against the wall in a choke-hold. He barked in my face, "where is it? Where's the stone?!"

I saw Enzo approaching Oscar from behind him, I'd like to hope to help me, and an idea popped into my head.

"He has it!" I gasped.

Oscar released me and stomped towards Enzo, who sighed out in frustration as he watched me disappear, double-time, leaving him to deal with Oscar by himself.

* * *

 **The Mystic Grill**

I sat down at the abandoned bar, and poured myself a shot of bourbon. I downed the shot in one gulp before picking up my phone and calling Ric. I prayed he wouldn't answer, dreaded the sound of his voice on the other end. I still wasn't sure on what I'd even say to him.

"Hey, kiddo. Bonnie said you were back in town," Ric of course answered. He always answered.

"Yeah. Yeah. Are...are you with Jo?" I asked him.

"No. No, I'm not. She freaked out a little. I...you know, I could really use your help looking for her, actually, if you're not busy," Ric asked.

"It's not her, Ric," I told him, softly, "it's not Jo."

"What-what are you talking about?" Ric scoffed.

"Bonnie made a mistake. The stone doesn't bring people back from the dead. It is just an old relic full of souls," I said.

I heard him scoff in disbelief, and then he said, "Ro, no, that is my wife. I know who I'm looking at, okay? She just...she needs a little time to adjust."

"No," I said, sadly, "it's not her. Jo was never in that stone, Ric. Bonnie accidentally put someone else into her body. I'm so sorry. Where are you? I'm meeting up with Damon. We can come by and figure this out together."

"I got to go," he said, abruptly, and hung up on me.

* * *

Damon joined me at the bar, and we discussed everything we had learned that day. Lily was the one who had given Kai the idea to put Elena in a coma, condemning Damon to a lifetime of loneliness, and bitterness, as punishment for not rescuing the Heretics from their Prison World. Ouch.

"So, Lily Salvatore is the reason I will never see Elena again," I muttered.

"Apparently, she has a thing for emotional torture," Damon said.

"Guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree?" I quipped back, monotonously.

"Hey!" Damon scorned back, defensively, "I do not go behind people's back and torture them! I like my enemies to look me in the eye and see the depth of my rage."

Damon chuckled bitterly, for that was all he could do, but I didn't break my look of deep concern.

"You sure you wanna do this?" I asked him.

"Burning that bastard's body would've been too good for Lily," Damon explained, "I want to give her that man she's cherished and loved and missed for a hundred years. I want her to run into Julian's arms, and I want her to remember what it feels like to have him returned. I want her to taste true happiness...and then, I want to rip his head off right in front of her. I want to break her heart. I want to break her spirit. I want to destroy her."

I smirked back at him, in amusement, and patted his shoulder, "that's really dark, Damon. So much for that new leaf, huh?"

Damon sighed and asked of me, "tell me I'm being stupid and reckless and cruel. Tell me I'm not doing right by Elena."

I smiled back at him, and I said, with sincerity, "you're doing right by Elena."

At these words, Damon smiled brightly back at me, and he held up his drink to toast, "well, I am glad to see you boarding this train to Crazy Town, Rosie Gilbert! I was getting lonely all by myself."


	87. You're Better Off Without Her

**Salvatore Boarding House / Heretic HQ - 17:30**

 _Lily Salvatore requests your presence to celebrate our town's peaceful spirit and introduce a new friend. This evening, 5:00._

Sure, Lily. I'd love to. Can't think of anything better. Mama Salvatore had presumably successfully raised her man-crush from the dead, and now she wanted to show him off, to her sons, their buds and...a bunch of compelled passers-by from the next town over?

Enzo and I happened to arrive at the same time, and we walked up to the front door together in a pleasantly awkward silence. Enzo had a beautiful bouquet of flowers in his hands; I had nothing but my winning personality.

I gave him a skeptical look and quipped, "did whatever animal they're serving for dinner get a plus-one?"

Enzo rolled his eyes almost audibly, and scoffed, "hilarious. I was invited."

I side-eyed him, realizing exactly why he was here, and I laughed, "you're scoping the competition."

Enzo scoffed in derision this time and adamantly declared, "there is no competition to scope."

I didn't offer a rebuttal, opting to do the mature thing, and let him save face, and just knocked on the door.

Enzo quickly added, "since you're here, if anyone's wondering, you're my date."

I almost choked on absolutely nothing, gave him a look and wheezed out, "sorry?"

Before Enzo could explain himself, Lily answered the door and smiled back at us both warmly. She declared cordially, or sickeningly, I couldn't quite decide, "Lorenzo, I'm so glad you came!"

Lorenzo. She called him Lorenzo. How cordial and polite, and mature. Very mature indeed, old lady Lilian. My brain continued along these lines, as I regressed back into Middle School mode.

Enzo smiled back weakly, and uttered, "wouldn't miss it."

He entered the foyer and handed Lily the gorgeous flowers, kissing her quickly on the cheek before he joined the rest of the party. Lily smiled politely all the while, watched him depart and then turned her attention to me.

"Rosanna, I know we've had a rocky past, but I hope this means you're willing to start fresh," Lily quite wrongly assumed.

I smirked back, quite tickled at the notion, and I told her, candidly, "you're the reason I'm never gonna see my sister again, so I hope you're joking."

I brushed past her to follow Enzo into the party, and Lily, looking slightly hurt, closed the door behind me.

* * *

The architect of this weird evening walked up onto the stage and took control of the microphone from the 1920's style jazz singer to address the party. She looked bashfully out at the crowd of party guests hanging on her every word...because she compelled them to do so.

"I hate to interrupt the party, but I just wanted to introduce my dearest love, Julian. He's just returned from...shall we say, travels abroad? My family is finally complete. My hope now is that in time, we can learn to accept each other and, together, restore this town, with its residents, to a state of peace," Lily professed and raised her glass in a toast, "cheers."

Her guests, all but two, followed suit out of either compelled agreement or politeness or...booze. My glass was empty. I sought to rectify that.

Julian and Beau parted from the gathering to have a private word. Beau was nodding along thoughtfully to Julian's pitch, neither realizing that Enzo was listening in on their conversation from around the corner. Beau disappeared, presumably to do as he was asked, and Julian came back down the hall. He saw Enzo standing nearby and walked over to introduce himself.

I put my endeavour on pause immediately, excited to catch the show. Julian extended his hand, and Enzo shaked it, politely. They made small-talk. Enzo clearly looked offended by their exchange, but he soon covered it up with a smile. Julian left to mingle with the other party guests, and I approached Enzo with a little smirk of my own.

"It's called dignity," I whispered to him, and subtly mimicked tossing the illusive ingredient over him, "have some! It's free."

Enzo smiled back at me, condescendingly, and declared, "oh, what I got in return was priceless. Julian is looking for Oscar's car. I intend to find it first."

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Lily walking into the hallway. Immediately, I smiled up at my 'date' seductively, before reaching up to straighten his tie for him. Enzo gave me a strange look, visibly confused by my sudden affectionate gesture.

"What are you doing?" He whispered to me.

"Lily is watching," I informed him, keeping up the act, as I placed a hand on his chest, "so, I am fixing your tie, making her jealous like any good date."

I leant in closer to him, and Enzo seemed thoroughly confused, but we were standing too close for Lily to catch that.

"That's what you wanted, right?" I asked him, "make her a little jealous?"

Enzo smirked, and rasped, "maybe a little."

There was a moment then, where I realised that Enzo had not said anything remotely snarky to me in a while, as though our proximity had temporarily overwhelmed him, and he'd resorted to complete silence. After another few beats, he snapped out of it and took a deep breath as he backed away from me.

"Anyway, I got what I came for," he said, and kissed me sweetly on the cheek, "have a nice night."

Enzo walked past me, toward the door and left without turning back. I watched him the whole time, and despite myself, I smiled.

"What the hell was that?" Bonnie asked from behind me.

I turned around slowly, with a quizzical look on my face. I shrugged and asked, "what was what?"

"Don't do that, we're past that," Bonnie insisted, and mocked my shrug as she followed me along to the drinks table.

"You gonna tell me where Jeremy is?" I hit back.

Bonnie's eyes widened. She took my hand and led me over to a more secluded corner of the den.

"I've told you already, he's fine, and it's much safer this way," Bonnie reminded me.

"My brother's not at art school, he lied, you lied, he's off on his lonesome somewhere hunting vampires, and I'm struggling to see where the old safety dance comes into that," I said.

"He's not alone, and you're stalling, and deflecting," Bonnie said.

"I'm worried," I huffed back, honestly, "and I miss him. And I don't even know what state he's in."

Bonnie thought for a moment and then she said, "I'm not doing this to be a bitch, okay? 90% of the people you talk to on a regular basis are vampires. Actually, it's just Matt that isn't, right?"

"Ric. Tyler. Hayley's...well, a hybrid," I corrected her.

"Jeremy's advantage comes from staying on the move; no one pinning down his location or getting a heads up or getting the drop on him for once," Bonnie explained, sympathetically, "and given the complicated relationship we all seem to have with vampires, he doesn't need anything or anyone distracting him from his work. From what he was born to do. It's not personal."

"Is this Bonnie the way too supportive girlfriend talking, or the Phoenix?" I asked her.

"Both," she said, with a little shrug, "it's not a separate entity. You know that. It's just...you."

"Right...careful when you lose it. You lose...you," I lamented.

"Same goes for magic," Bonnie confided, and thankfully forgot about where our conversation had began.

* * *

Bonnie had suggested we head out. And I did not need asking twice. Lily threw pretty boring parties. As we waited for one of Lily's compelled servants to fetch our coats, a young man in a caterer's uniform approached us.

"Excuse me. Can you tell me where the high school is?" he asked.

I gave him a confused look, not really getting the joke, and replied, "uh...yeah, but the entire town's shut down. You haven't noticed the million signs?"

The caterer looked anxious and jittery, as if he desperately needed to do something, or maybe relieve something. He tried Bonnie this time.

"Yeah, I'm looking for the high school," he said, insistently.

Bonnie gave me a concerned look and told him, "yeah, dude, we heard you the first time. Why?"

"Uh, can you tell me where the high school is?" he asked me, again.

"He's compelled," Bonnie uttered under her breath and she asked him, "who've you been talking to?"

"Uh, I can't say. If my boss is looking for me, can you tell him I quit?" He asked and then scarpered past us out the door.

"Uh, what was that about?" Matt asked, looking confused and worried.

I watched the young man walk away from the boarding house into the night, double-time, and I said, "I don't know, but I get the impression he didn't, either. We should follow him."

Matt's phone jingled. We watched him check a text messages.

"Unless you have other plans...?" Bonnie scoffed at him.

Matt smirked back and said, "this'll only take a minute. I'll meet you at my truck."

* * *

 **Mystic Falls High School**

I don't like horror movies. I guess one could argue my day-to-day life sometimes resembles one, a lot of their tropes anyway, but I don't ever seek this stuff out.

We took a leap of faith in the young man's compelled convictions and assumed he'd make it to the high school. Matt led us inside, armed with a flashlight in one hand and a police-issue handgun in the other. As we walked down the main hallway, the lights flickered about over our heads. We all tensed up even more. Matt gestured to the door sign labelled NO ENTRY in big scrawling letters. We entered. Nothing but custodial equipment greeted us.

We carried on down the hallway of nightmares. Squeaking wheels rattled along behind us. We spun. Matt aimed his flashlight and gun toward the source of the noise. The young caterer from the party, still dressed in his work uniform, was walking in a daze, pushing an IV stand down the hall toward us.

"Hey!" Matt barked, "hey, what are you doing here?"

The young man, looking much paler and sweatier than before, walked between us and went into a nearby classroom. As he passed me, without even acknowledging my existence, I noticed that he was actually hooked up to the IV bag dangling on his stand. Matt looked at me. I looked at Bonnie.

"He didn't actually see us...did he?" Bonnie whispered.

We carefully followed the young man into the classroom and stood in the doorway for a minute, stunned. The caterer took his seat, joining at least two dozen other men and women of various ages, motionless and silent, hooked up to IVs; nearly every desk was filled. Total nightmare fuel.

Matt shined his flashlight in the faces of an older woman and several teenagers in the nearest column of seats, but they didn't react to the light, they didn't so much as flinch or blink.

"Alright, everybody. Please stand up. We're gonna get you out of here, okay?" Matt raised his voice to address the room.

Nothing. Nobody moved an inch.

"It's okay. We are going to help you. We need to get you out of here!" I over-enunciated and snapped my fingers in front of several of their faces; they all sat as still as statues; no one in this room registered our presence.

"It's not gonna work, you guys. Someone compelled them to be here," Bonnie said.

* * *

 **Midlothian County Impound**

"So, you just left them all there?" Enzo asked, "ice-cold, love."

I stopped in my tracks and Enzo over-took me with a snicker. I had relayed the absolute horror show I'd witnessed last night and he didn't gasp once. He merely chuckled at my animated retelling and teased me.

"Remind me why I'm helping you again?" I grumbled.

"You've taken a part-time job as Bonnie's personal assistant," Enzo posed.

"Let's go back to silence. That was golden," I muttered back.

"That would be my preference," Enzo said, shooting a smirk back at me.

We walked around the old junkyard, through rows of old and abandoned cars, some of which were so badly smashed up they weren't particularly recognisable as cars anymore. I raised the small scrap of paper in my hand with Oscar's license plate on it periodically. We'd enjoyed the golden silence for all of two minutes, and I just had to ask.

"Why would a centuries-old vampire with a bunch of witch groupies be so desperate to find anything collecting dust in the Midlothian County impound?" I asked Enzo, skeptically, "I don't claim to know much about this Julian fellow but this seems a little beneath him."

Enzo shrugged, and simply declared, "well, if Julian wants it, then so do I."

I stifled a chuckle, and asked, "are we talking about Oscar's car, or Lily?"

Enzo, knowing that I had a point, said nothing. It was adorable.

"You're not doing this to stop a psychopath," I laughed, "you just want the girl."

Enzo sarcastically declared, "congratulations. You've just unlocked every man's true motivation in life."

"Let me give you some advice," I offered him, "stop treating Lily like some prize to be won. See where that gets you."

Enzo scoffed, and said, "spoken like somebody who's never been fought over."

I rolled my eyes, and told him, "it's not the turn-on you think it is. Try flowers. A quiet dinner. _Listening_."

Enzo chuckled in amusement, and I stopped suddenly, gesturing to the yellow car with a smashed back window, with a license plate matching the scribbled note.

"Found it," I smiled, triumphantly.

Enzo wrinkled his nose in distaste, and joked, "well, I'm assuming Julian doesn't want it for it's Bluebook value."

The trunk was littered with empty bottles of beer and engine oil. I watched Enzo rip up the carpet lining, pull out the spare tire, and then a long object wrapped in a dirty cloth; like he knew exactly where it was hidden. He unravelled a silver shortsword. The end of the blade was shaped in an X.

Enzo examined it closely and said, "I'll wager this is what Julian's looking for. Wonder what makes it so special?"

"I think I recognise it...the cross at the end of the blade, Bonnie mentioned something about it back when she was researching the stone for Ric. Let me see what I can dig up," I suggested and attempted to take the sword from him, but Enzo yanked it back.

"No thanks, love. I don't need research to tell me which one's the pointy end. What do we need to know?" Enzo asked.

"If he wants to kill someone with it, or he's worried about being killed by it," I told him.

"Well, there's one way to find out- ram it through his chest. See what happens," Enzo suggested.

I sighed heavily and told him, "I know what's not gonna happen - Lily falling hopelessly in love with the person who murdered her sweetheart."

"Not if I make it look like self-defense," Enzo hit back.

"Good idea!" I told him, mockingly, "go pick a fight with an extremely powerful, unhinged ancient vampire! Should work out great."

"Is that a hint of concern for me I detect in your voice?" Enzo asked, with the most infuriating smirk.

I let out a hearty belly-laugh, playfully shoved the sword back against his chest and told him, "now that I think about it...go ahead and kill each other. Win-win for me!"

* * *

 **Scull Bar**

I sat down at a table near the windows, and plopped my bag down on the floor before guiltily returning one of Matt's many calls. I could hear the sounds of the highway rushing by in the background; he was driving, fast.

Matt sarcastically groaned, "well, look who's finally calling me back."

"I'm sorry," I told him, honestly, "I got waylaid at an impound lot with Enzo, which is somehow not even the worst part of my day. Alaric, he-"

Matt interrupted me, harshly and scorned, "I needed your help, Ro. Instead, you were ditching my calls to hang out with the guy who recently kidnapped Caroline."

I scoffed, defensively, and told him, "uh, we weren't hanging out. I was helping him find some sword to kill Julian. Where are you? I'll come meet you."

"Don't bother," Matt scorned back, bitterly, "Tyler actually took my call. He thinks he found a way to help, and I'm looking into it. Enjoy the Holidays with your Original Sugar Daddy."

Matt hung up, and a small part of me was glad that the barrage of anger was over. I had only a few moments to digest what he'd said, before an exhausted-looking Enzo sat down next to me at the table, setting down two shots of whiskey before us. He slid one over to me. After taking in my expression, he noted, "guess we could both use a drink."

I smiled back at him, a little, and took the shot.

"I heard today didn't go so well," I said.

"With the sword, or with Lily? Because the answer's the same," Enzo scoffed.

"So, that's it?" I asked him, "you're giving up?"

Enzo gave me a look, and then laughed, "when nine Russians tell you you're drunk, you lie down. Lily made her intentions clear."

I considered it for a moment before I nodded my head, and said, "good."

Enzo seemed surprised by this reaction.

I shrugged a little, and told him, "you're better off without her."

Enzo and I looked at each other for another beat before turning our attention into our glasses.

"I got your message about the sword after finding out first-hand, but I appreciate the gesture nonetheless," Enzo said.

Bonnie had discovered the stone gave the sword its power against immortal foes. Without it, the blade was merely a blade. I'd sent Enzo a hasty text with that vital fact, and then got blindsided by a very drunk and depressed Ric who stole the rest of my attention.

"You're welcome," I replied, waging that was his version of a 'thank you'.

"I...also saw you at the burning barn...delivering your monologue to a very dead Enzo," he said, and stopped by heart for a second. I remembered talking to the barn like a crazy person, and I could feel my cheeks heat up as I tried to remember exactly what I said.

I huffed out, "ah yes, the barn _you_ burned down."

Enzo smiled, and then his voice lowered and he said, sincerely, "your words were kind...very on brand, but you didn't know me, not well enough to say any of that."

"I don't need to know everything about you, Enzo. I was just running with what I saw, what you showed me," I told him, honestly, "I'm gonna call it a night. Thank you for the drink."

"Anytime, love," Enzo said.


End file.
